“O God, You Are My God”

“O God, You Are My God” (Psalm 63)
Pastor Cameron Jungels
Eastside Baptist Church
Sunday AM, September 18, 2016
Psalm 63 (NIV) 
A psalm of David. When he was in the Desert of Judah. 

1 You, God, are my God, 
earnestly I seek you; 
I thirst for you, 
my whole being longs for you, 
in a dry and parched land 
where there is no water. 
2 I have seen you in the sanctuary 
and beheld your power and your glory. 
3 Because your love is better than life, 
my lips will glorify you. 
4 I will praise you as long as I live, 
and in your name I will lift up my hands. 
5 I will be fully satisfied as with the richest of foods; 
with singing lips my mouth will praise you. 
6 On my bed I remember you; 
I think of you through the watches of the night. 
7 Because you are my help, 
I sing in the shadow of your wings. 
8 I cling to you; 
your right hand upholds me. 
9 Those who want to kill me will be destroyed; 
they will go down to the depths of the earth. 
10 They will be given over to the sword 
and become food for jackals. 
11 But the king will rejoice in God; 
all who swear by God will glory in him, 
while the mouths of liars will be silenced. 
Main Idea: When the trials of life overwhelm us, we must run to God. 
1. When the trials of life overwhelm us, we must long for God with all of our hearts.

2. When the trials of life come, we must trust God for protection and deliverance.

3. When the trials of life come, we must joyfully anticipate the good that God has intended to accomplish with the trial.

"Themes in Proverbs: Planning for the Future"

Themes in Proverbs: Planning for the Future
Outline drawn from Tremper Longman III, Proverbs, Baker Commentary on the Old Testament Wisdom and Psalms (Grand Rapids: Baker, 2006), 557–558.

Having a Goal in Mind
Planning requires a goal.A strategy is needed to reach the goal.Planning involves the imagination.To be a successful planner, one must understand what it takes to reach a goal.A good planner must anticipate obstacles on the way and devise alternatives to reach the goal or perhaps even alter the goal.To plan well requires wisdom, a skill of living that knows how to navigate life.

Benefits of Wise Planning
A number of proverbs make it clear that the sages knew the value of planning.Wise planning will be successful and lead to great benefits.“The plans of the diligent lead to profit as surely as haste leads to poverty.” (Prov. 21:5, NIV).Wise planning leads to great confidence in the future (ex: noble woman, 31:25).Those who plan wisely receive “covenant love” and “faithfulness.” 

Wise vs. foolish planning
Wise planning seeks advice from other wise people.Yet the counsel of others is only helpful if the advice is coming from those who are wise.Examples of Bad counselors: Amnon and Jonadab (2 Samuel 13); Rehoboam and his “young” counselors (1 Kings 12).Wise planning also has a virtuous goal and will only utilize strategies that are fair and honest (12:5a). 

God’s Plans and our Plans
The most important aspect of wise planning is awareness that one’s plans are ultimately at the service of God’s superseding purpose. 

To humans belong the plans of the heart, but from the LORD comes the proper answer of the tongue. (Prov. 16:1, NIV)

Commit to the LORD whatever you do, and he will establish your plans. (Prov. 16:3, NIV)

The LORD works out everything to its proper end-- even the wicked for a day of disaster. (Prov. 16:4, NIV)

In their hearts humans plan their course, but the LORD establishes their steps. (Prov. 16:9, NIV)

The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the LORD. (Prov. 16:33, NIV)

Many are the plans in a person's heart, but it is the LORD's purpose that prevails. (Prov. 19:21, NIV)

A person's steps are directed by the LORD. How then can anyone understand their own way? (Prov. 20:24, NIV)

People cannot be absolutely certain that they know the way the future will pan out. In spite of their planning, they must be ready to implement changes if God so wills. 

Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring. (Prov. 27:1, NIV)

Daniel the Wise Planner
A good example of wise planning is Daniel (Ch. 1).Daniel wants to eat differently than the king desires, consuming vegetables and water instead of the rich food and wine of the king. His plans lead him to request the chief official, Ashpenaz, to substitute the former for the latter, but Ashpenaz refuses out of fear of Nebuchadnezzar. Daniel does not panic but rather devises an alternate plan. He privately approaches the unnamed servant who actually brings the food to him and his three friends and asks him to make the substitution. He proposes a ten-day trial period, and if the four Israelites grow weak and tired looking—what Ashpenaz feared—they would go back on the rich-food menu. The underling agrees, and Daniel reaches his desired goal.

Foolish Planning
Proverbs does not talk only about wise planning; it also contrasts it with foolish planning. God condemns foolish plans. 

There are six things the LORD hates, seven that are detestable to him:     …a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, (Prov. 6:16, 18, NIV)

The LORD detests the thoughts of the wicked, but gracious words are pure in his sight. (Prov. 15:26, NIV)

They are characterized as fraudulent.

…the advice of the wicked is deceitful. (Prov. 12:5b, NIV)

Deceit is in the hearts of those who plot evil (Prov. 12:20a, NIV)

Those who plan in such a way will not succeed but will wander aimlessly.

Do not those who plot evil go astray? But those who plan what is good find love and faithfulness. (Prov. 14:22, NIV)

“Joseph, the Dreamer”

“Joseph, the Dreamer” (Genesis 37:1–11)
Pastor Cameron Jungels
Eastside Baptist Church
Sunday PM, September 11, 2016
Genesis 37:1–11 (NIV) 
37 Jacob lived in the land where his father had stayed, the land of Canaan. 
2 This is the account of Jacob’s family line. 
Joseph, a young man of seventeen, was tending the flocks with his brothers, the sons of Bilhah and the sons of Zilpah, his father’s wives, and he brought their father a bad report about them. 
3 Now Israel loved Joseph more than any of his other sons, because he had been born to him in his old age; and he made an ornate robe for him. 4 When his brothers saw that their father loved him more than any of them, they hated him and could not speak a kind word to him. 
5 Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers, they hated him all the more. 6 He said to them, “Listen to this dream I had: 7 We were binding sheaves of grain out in the field when suddenly my sheaf rose and stood upright, while your sheaves gathered around mine and bowed down to it.” 
8 His brothers said to him, “Do you intend to reign over us? Will you actually rule us?” And they hated him all the more because of his dream and what he had said. 
9 Then he had another dream, and he told it to his brothers. “Listen,” he said, “I had another dream, and this time the sun and moon and eleven stars were bowing down to me.” 
10 When he told his father as well as his brothers, his father rebuked him and said, “What is this dream you had? Will your mother and I and your brothers actually come and bow down to the ground before you?” 11 His brothers were jealous of him, but his father kept the matter in mind. 
1. Favoritism that Fuels a Family Feud (1–4)
a. Jacob was in the right place (1).
b. But Jacob was not leading his family the right way (2–4).
i. Jacob’s unwise choices resulted in ongoing family tension (2).
ii. Jacob’s favoritism of Joseph was foolish, and it fueled an internal family feud that caused Joseph to be hated and alienated by his brothers.
2. Dreams that Disclose Destinies (5–11).a. Broken but not useless…
b. Divinely given dreams…
c. Despised dreams…
d. Deliberated upon dreams…
Main Idea: In our selfishness and shortsightedness, we act in foolish ways that create tension and hatred and cause people to be despised. But God is not hindered by our foolishness. God is not bound to use only those who come from healthy families or those who are well-liked by everyone. No, in his grace and wisdom God is often pleased to call into his service the castaways, the rejected, and the despised for his purposes. 

“Worship the Almighty, Holy God”

“Worship the Almighty, Holy God” (Psalm 95)
Pastor Cameron Jungels
Eastside Baptist Church
Sunday AM, September 11, 2016
Psalm 95 (NIV) 
1 Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord; 
let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation. 
2 Let us come before him with thanksgiving 
and extol him with music and song. 
3 For the Lord is the great God, 
the great King above all gods. 
4 In his hand are the depths of the earth, 
and the mountain peaks belong to him. 
5 The sea is his, for he made it, 
and his hands formed the dry land. 
6 Come, let us bow down in worship, 
let us kneel before the Lord our Maker; 
7 for he is our God 
and we are the people of his pasture, 
the flock under his care. 
Today, if only you would hear his voice, 
8 “Do not harden your hearts as you did at Meribah,  
as you did that day at Massah in the wilderness, 
9 where your ancestors tested me; 
they tried me, though they had seen what I did. 
10 For forty years I was angry with that generation; 
I said, ‘They are a people whose hearts go astray, 
and they have not known my ways.’ 
11 So I declared on oath in my anger, 
‘They shall never enter my rest.’” 
1. Rejoicing (1–5)

2. Reverence (6–7a)

3. Response (7b–11)
Main Idea: True worship of God demands rejoicing, reverence, and a response of faith and obedience.
Worship is not only the bending of the knee; it is also the bending of the will before our sovereign God.

“Isaac’s other Son”

“Isaac’s other Son” (Genesis 36)
Pastor Cameron Jungels
Eastside Baptist Church
Sunday PM, August 28, 2016
Genesis 36:1–43 (NIV) 

36 This is the account of the family line of Esau (that is, Edom). 
2 Esau took his wives from the women of Canaan: Adah daughter of Elon the Hittite, and Oholibamah daughter of Anah and granddaughter of Zibeon the Hivite—3 also Basemath daughter of Ishmael and sister of Nebaioth. 
4 Adah bore Eliphaz to Esau, Basemath bore Reuel, 5 and Oholibamah bore Jeush, Jalam and Korah. These were the sons of Esau, who were born to him in Canaan. 
6 Esau took his wives and sons and daughters and all the members of his household, as well as his livestock and all his other animals and all the goods he had acquired in Canaan, and moved to a land some distance from his brother Jacob. 7 Their possessions were too great for them to remain together; the land where they were staying could not support them both because of their livestock. 8 So Esau (that is, Edom) settled in the hill country of Seir. 
9 This is the account of the family line of Esau the father of the Edomites in the hill country of Seir. 
10 These are the names of Esau’s sons: 
Eliphaz, the son of Esau’s wife Adah, and Reuel, the son of Esau’s wife Basemath. 
11 The sons of Eliphaz: 
Teman, Omar, Zepho, Gatam and Kenaz. 
12 Esau’s son Eliphaz also had a concubine named Timna, who bore him Amalek. These were grandsons of Esau’s wife Adah. 
13 The sons of Reuel: 
Nahath, Zerah, Shammah and Mizzah. These were grandsons of Esau’s wife Basemath. 
14 The sons of Esau’s wife Oholibamah daughter of Anah and granddaughter of Zibeon, whom she bore to Esau: 
Jeush, Jalam and Korah. 
15 These were the chiefs among Esau’s descendants: 
The sons of Eliphaz the firstborn of Esau: 
Chiefs Teman, Omar, Zepho, Kenaz, 16 Korah, Gatam and Amalek. These were the chiefs descended from Eliphaz in Edom; they were grandsons of Adah. 
17 The sons of Esau’s son Reuel: 
Chiefs Nahath, Zerah, Shammah and Mizzah. These were the chiefs descended from Reuel in Edom; they were grandsons of Esau’s wife Basemath. 
18 The sons of Esau’s wife Oholibamah: 
Chiefs Jeush, Jalam and Korah. These were the chiefs descended from Esau’s wife Oholibamah daughter of Anah. 
19 These were the sons of Esau (that is, Edom), and these were their chiefs. 
20 These were the sons of Seir the Horite, who were living in the region: 
Lotan, Shobal, Zibeon, Anah, 21 Dishon, Ezer and Dishan. These sons of Seir in Edom were Horite chiefs. 
22 The sons of Lotan: 
Hori and Homam. Timna was Lotan’s sister. 
23 The sons of Shobal: 
Alvan, Manahath, Ebal, Shepho and Onam. 
24 The sons of Zibeon: 
Aiah and Anah. This is the Anah who discovered the hot springs  in the desert while he was grazing the donkeys of his father Zibeon. 
25 The children of Anah: 
Dishon and Oholibamah daughter of Anah. 
26 The sons of Dishon: 
Hemdan, Eshban, Ithran and Keran. 
27 The sons of Ezer: 
Bilhan, Zaavan and Akan. 
28 The sons of Dishan: 
Uz and Aran. 
29 These were the Horite chiefs: 
Lotan, Shobal, Zibeon, Anah, 30 Dishon, Ezer and Dishan. These were the Horite chiefs, according to their divisions, in the land of Seir. 
31 These were the kings who reigned in Edom before any Israelite king reigned: 
32 Bela son of Beor became king of Edom. His city was named Dinhabah. 
33 When Bela died, Jobab son of Zerah from Bozrah succeeded him as king. 
34 When Jobab died, Husham from the land of the Temanites succeeded him as king. 
35 When Husham died, Hadad son of Bedad, who defeated Midian in the country of Moab, succeeded him as king. His city was named Avith. 
36 When Hadad died, Samlah from Masrekah succeeded him as king. 
37 When Samlah died, Shaul from Rehoboth on the river succeeded him as king. 
38 When Shaul died, Baal-Hanan son of Akbor succeeded him as king. 
39 When Baal-Hanan son of Akbor died, Hadad succeeded him as king. His city was named Pau, and his wife’s name was Mehetabel daughter of Matred, the daughter of Me-Zahab. 
40 These were the chiefs descended from Esau, by name, according to their clans and regions: 
Timna, Alvah, Jetheth, 41 Oholibamah, Elah, Pinon, 42 Kenaz, Teman, Mibzar, 43 Magdiel and Iram. These were the chiefs of Edom, according to their settlements in the land they occupied. 
This is the family line of Esau, the father of the Edomites. 

1. God is the Lord of history, and his story involves real events and real people.
2. God is concerned not only with Israel, but also the nations.
3. God is faithful to his promises. 
4. God is sovereign in his gracious choice. 
5. God is gracious not only to his chosen, but also generally to the world.

“Wise Child Training” Chapter 11

Opening Up Proverbs
A study by Jim Newheiser
“Wise Child Training” Chapter 11
Discipline Your Children
Why is discipline necessary?God has given the rod of discipline as a tool to remove folly from your child’s heart.Discipline is a test of your love for your child and your trust in God.How to carry out biblical disciplineDon’t misuse discipline.Apply both the rod and reproof.
Impart Wisdom to Your Children
Teach them.Education takes place in the home.The goal of parental instruction is to shape character.Formal and informal instruction
Children Should Honor Their Parents
Embrace discipline and instruction.Honor your parents in their old age.Bring joy to your parents.Honor your parents or else…
Why Are Some Children Wayward?
Does wise parenting guarantee wise kids?Why do kids turn out the way they do?
Conclusion:
Train your children in wisdom.

“Jacob Returns to the House of God”

“Jacob Returns to the House of God” (Genesis 35:1–29)
Pastor Cameron Jungels
Eastside Baptist Church
Sunday PM, August 21, 2016
Genesis 35:1–29 (NIV) 
35 Then God said to Jacob, “Go up to Bethel and settle there, and build an altar there to God, who appeared to you when you were fleeing from your brother Esau.” 
2 So Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, “Get rid of the foreign gods you have with you, and purify yourselves and change your clothes. 3 Then come, let us go up to Bethel, where I will build an altar to God, who answered me in the day of my distress and who has been with me wherever I have gone.” 4 So they gave Jacob all the foreign gods they had and the rings in their ears, and Jacob buried them under the oak at Shechem. 5 Then they set out, and the terror of God fell on the towns all around them so that no one pursued them. 
6 Jacob and all the people with him came to Luz (that is, Bethel) in the land of Canaan. 7 There he built an altar, and he called the place El Bethel, because it was there that God revealed himself to him when he was fleeing from his brother. 
8 Now Deborah, Rebekah’s nurse, died and was buried under the oak outside Bethel. So it was named Allon Bakuth. 
9 After Jacob returned from Paddan Aram, God appeared to him again and blessed him. 10 God said to him, “Your name is Jacob, but you will no longer be called Jacob; your name will be Israel.” So he named him Israel. 
11 And God said to him, “I am God Almighty; be fruitful and increase in number. A nation and a community of nations will come from you, and kings will be among your descendants. 12 The land I gave to Abraham and Isaac I also give to you, and I will give this land to your descendants after you.” 13 Then God went up from him at the place where he had talked with him. 
14 Jacob set up a stone pillar at the place where God had talked with him, and he poured out a drink offering on it; he also poured oil on it. 15 Jacob called the place where God had talked with him Bethel.  
16 Then they moved on from Bethel. While they were still some distance from Ephrath, Rachel began to give birth and had great difficulty. 17 And as she was having great difficulty in childbirth, the midwife said to her, “Don’t despair, for you have another son.” 18 As she breathed her last—for she was dying—she named her son Ben-Oni.  But his father named him Benjamin.  
19 So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem). 20 Over her tomb Jacob set up a pillar, and to this day that pillar marks Rachel’s tomb. 
21 Israel moved on again and pitched his tent beyond Migdal Eder. 22 While Israel was living in that region, Reuben went in and slept with his father’s concubine Bilhah, and Israel heard of it. 
Jacob had twelve sons: 
23 The sons of Leah: 
Reuben the firstborn of Jacob, 
Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar and Zebulun. 
24 The sons of Rachel: 
Joseph and Benjamin. 
25 The sons of Rachel’s servant Bilhah: 
Dan and Naphtali. 
26 The sons of Leah’s servant Zilpah: 
Gad and Asher. 
These were the sons of Jacob, who were born to him in Paddan Aram. 
27 Jacob came home to his father Isaac in Mamre, near Kiriath Arba (that is, Hebron), where Abraham and Isaac had stayed. 28 Isaac lived a hundred and eighty years. 29 Then he breathed his last and died and was gathered to his people, old and full of years. And his sons Esau and Jacob buried him. 
1. Worshiping the one and only holy God (1–7).
a. Worship requires obedience (1, 6–7).
b. Worship demands allegiance and purity (2–5).
2. Honoring those deserving of honor (8).

3. Reaffirming God’s gracious promises (9–15).

4. Blessing in the midst of tragedy (16–20).

5. A house full of sinful sons (21–26).

6. Back home at peace (27–29).

Main Idea: Even though we experience trouble and hardship in this life, those who worship God exclusively and in purity may anticipate enjoying the blessings of God and the peace and rest that God brings to his people.

“Extreme Vengeance”

“Extreme Vengeance” (Genesis 34:1–31)
Pastor Cameron Jungels
Eastside Baptist Church
Sunday PM, August 14, 2016
 
Genesis 34:1–31 (NIV)
34 Now Dinah, the daughter Leah had borne to Jacob, went out to visit the women of the land. 2 When Shechem son of Hamor the Hivite, the ruler of that area, saw her, he took her and raped her. 3 His heart was drawn to Dinah daughter of Jacob; he loved the young woman and spoke tenderly to her.4 And Shechem said to his father Hamor, “Get me this girl as my wife.”
5 When Jacob heard that his daughter Dinah had been defiled, his sons were in the fields with his livestock; so he did nothing about it until they came home.
6 Then Shechem’s father Hamor went out to talk with Jacob. 7 Meanwhile,Jacob’s sons had come in from the fields as soon as they heard what had happened. They were shocked and furious, because Shechem had done an outrageous thing in Israel by sleeping with Jacob’s daughter—a thing that should not be done.
8 But Hamor said to them, “My son Shechem has his heart set on your daughter. Please give her to him as his wife. 9 Intermarry with us; give us your daughters and take our daughters for yourselves. 10 You can settle among us; the land is open to you. Live in it, trade in it, and acquire property in it.”
11 Then Shechem said to Dinah’s father and brothers, “Let me find favor in your eyes, and I will give you whatever you ask. 12 Make the price for the bride and the gift I am to bring as great as you like, and I’ll pay whatever you ask me. Only give me the young woman as my wife.”
13 Because their sister Dinah had been defiled, Jacob’s sons replied deceitfully as they spoke to Shechem and his father Hamor. 14 They said to them, “We can’t do such a thing;we can’t give our sister to a man who is not circumcised. That would be a disgrace to us. 15 We will enter into an agreement with you on one condition only: that you become like us by circumcising all your males. 16 The we will give you our daughters and take your daughters for ourselves. We’ll settle among you and become one people with you. 17 But if you will not agree to be circumcised, we’ll take our sister and go.”
18 Their proposal seemed good to Hamor and his son Shechem. 19 The young man, who was the most honored of all his father’s family, lost no time in doing what they said, because he was delighted with Jacob’s daughter. 20 So Hamor and his son Shechem went to the gate of their city to speak to the men of their city. 21 “These men are friendly toward us,” they said. “Let them live in our land and trade init; the land has plenty of room for them. We can marry their daughters and they can marry ours. 22 But the men will agree to live with us as one people only on the condition that our males be circumcised, as they themselves are. 23 Won’t their livestock, their property and all their other animals become ours? So let us agree to their terms, and they will settle among us.”
24 All the men who went out of the city gate agreed with Hamor and his son Shechem, and every male in the city was circumcised.
25 Three days later, while all of them were still in pain, two of Jacob’s sons, Simeon and Levi, Dinah’s brothers, took their swords and attacked the unsuspecting city, killing every male. 26 They put Hamor and his son Shechem to the sword and took Dinah from Shechem’s house and left. 27 The sons of Jacob came upon the dead bodies and looted the city where their sister had been defiled. 28 They seized their flocks and herds and donkeys and everything else of theirs in the city and out in the fields. 29 They carried off all their wealth and all their women and children, taking as plunder everything in the houses.
30 Then Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, “You have brought trouble on me by making me obnoxious to the Canaanites and Perizzites, the people living in this land. We are few in number, and if they join forces against me and attack me, I and my household will be destroyed.”
31 But they replied, “Should he have treated our sister like a prostitute?”
 
11. 1.    Incomplete obedience and compromise with the world leads to troublesome consequences down the road.
 
2.  2.  Self-interested sexual desire is not self-sacrificial love.
 
3.  3.  Favoritism and unchecked narcissism lead to foolish and disastrous actions.
 
4.  4.  Passivity in leadership creates a vacuum that is often filled by those not qualified to lead (5, 30–31).
 
5.  5.  “Justice”accomplished through deception and violent vengeance is not righteous justice.
 
6.  6.  Jacob’s sons profaned the sign of God’s holy covenant (circumcision) and used it as a ploy in their plot for revenge.
 
7.  7.  The depth of human selfishness and deception is deep and dark.
 
8.  8.   In the providence of God, God’s purposes and plans are always fulfilled, even if through the ungodly motives and actions of people.

“Jacob and Esau at Peace”

“Jacob and Esau at Peace” (Genesis 33:1–20)
Pastor Cameron Jungels
Eastside Baptist Church
Sunday AM, August 7, 2016
Genesis 33:1–20 (NIV) 

33 Jacob looked up and there was Esau, coming with his four hundred men; so he divided the children among Leah, Rachel and the two female servants. 2 He put the female servants and their children in front, Leah and her children next, and Rachel and Joseph in the rear. 3 He himself went on ahead and bowed down to the ground seven times as he approached his brother. 
4 But Esau ran to meet Jacob and embraced him; he threw his arms around his neck and kissed him. And they wept. 5 Then Esau looked up and saw the women and children. “Who are these with you?” he asked. 
Jacob answered, “They are the children God has graciously given your servant.” 
6 Then the female servants and their children approached and bowed down. 7 Next, Leah and her children came and bowed down. Last of all came Joseph and Rachel, and they too bowed down. 
8 Esau asked, “What’s the meaning of all these flocks and herds I met?” 
“To find favor in your eyes, my lord,” he said. 
9 But Esau said, “I already have plenty, my brother. Keep what you have for yourself.” 
10 “No, please!” said Jacob. “If I have found favor in your eyes, accept this gift from me. For to see your face is like seeing the face of God, now that you have received me favorably. 11 Please accept the present that was brought to you, for God has been gracious to me and I have all I need.” And because Jacob insisted, Esau accepted it. 
12 Then Esau said, “Let us be on our way; I’ll accompany you.” 
13 But Jacob said to him, “My lord knows that the children are tender and that I must care for the ewes and cows that are nursing their young. If they are driven hard just one day, all the animals will die. 14 So let my lord go on ahead of his servant, while I move along slowly at the pace of the flocks and herds before me and the pace of the children, until I come to my lord in Seir.” 
15 Esau said, “Then let me leave some of my men with you.” 
“But why do that?” Jacob asked. “Just let me find favor in the eyes of my lord.” 
16 So that day Esau started on his way back to Seir. 17 Jacob, however, went to Sukkoth, where he built a place for himself and made shelters for his livestock. That is why the place is called Sukkoth. 
18 After Jacob came from Paddan Aram, he arrived safely at the city of Shechem in Canaan and camped within sight of the city. 19 For a hundred pieces of silver, he bought from the sons of Hamor, the father of Shechem, the plot of ground where he pitched his tent. 20 There he set up an altar and called it El Elohe Israel. 
Main Idea: In spite of our fears and failures, God is faithful to his promises, answers prayer, and rescues his people in time of need.

“Jacob’s Exodus”

“Jacob’s Exodus” (Genesis 31:1–55)
Pastor Cameron Jungels
Eastside Baptist Church
Sunday PM, July 17, 2016
Genesis 31:1–55 (NIV) 
31 Jacob heard that Laban’s sons were saying, “Jacob has taken everything our father owned and has gained all this wealth from what belonged to our father.” 2 And Jacob noticed that Laban’s attitude toward him was not what it had been. 
3 Then the Lord said to Jacob, “Go back to the land of your fathers and to your relatives, and I will be with you.” 
4 So Jacob sent word to Rachel and Leah to come out to the fields where his flocks were. 5 He said to them, “I see that your father’s attitude toward me is not what it was before, but the God of my father has been with me. 6 You know that I’ve worked for your father with all my strength, 7 yet your father has cheated me by changing my wages ten times. However, God has not allowed him to harm me. 8 If he said, ‘The speckled ones will be your wages,’ then all the flocks gave birth to speckled young; and if he said, ‘The streaked ones will be your wages,’ then all the flocks bore streaked young. 9 So God has taken away your father’s livestock and has given them to me. 
10 “In breeding season I once had a dream in which I looked up and saw that the male goats mating with the flock were streaked, speckled or spotted. 11 The angel of God said to me in the dream, ‘Jacob.’ I answered, ‘Here I am.’ 12 And he said, ‘Look up and see that all the male goats mating with the flock are streaked, speckled or spotted, for I have seen all that Laban has been doing to you. 13 I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed a pillar and where you made a vow to me. Now leave this land at once and go back to your native land.’” 
14 Then Rachel and Leah replied, “Do we still have any share in the inheritance of our father’s estate? 15 Does he not regard us as foreigners? Not only has he sold us, but he has used up what was paid for us. 16 Surely all the wealth that God took away from our father belongs to us and our children. So do whatever God has told you.” 
17 Then Jacob put his children and his wives on camels, 18 and he drove all his livestock ahead of him, along with all the goods he had accumulated in Paddan Aram, to go to his father Isaac in the land of Canaan. 
19 When Laban had gone to shear his sheep, Rachel stole her father’s household gods. 20 Moreover, Jacob deceived Laban the Aramean by not telling him he was running away. 21 So he fled with all he had, crossed the Euphrates River, and headed for the hill country of Gilead. 
22 On the third day Laban was told that Jacob had fled. 23 Taking his relatives with him, he pursued Jacob for seven days and caught up with him in the hill country of Gilead. 24 Then God came to Laban the Aramean in a dream at night and said to him, “Be careful not to say anything to Jacob, either good or bad.” 
25 Jacob had pitched his tent in the hill country of Gilead when Laban overtook him, and Laban and his relatives camped there too. 26 Then Laban said to Jacob, “What have you done? You’ve deceived me, and you’ve carried off my daughters like captives in war. 27 Why did you run off secretly and deceive me? Why didn’t you tell me, so I could send you away with joy and singing to the music of timbrels and harps? 28 You didn’t even let me kiss my grandchildren and my daughters goodbye. You have done a foolish thing. 29 I have the power to harm you; but last night the God of your father said to me, ‘Be careful not to say anything to Jacob, either good or bad.’ 30 Now you have gone off because you longed to return to your father’s household. But why did you steal my gods?” 
31 Jacob answered Laban, “I was afraid, because I thought you would take your daughters away from me by force. 32 But if you find anyone who has your gods, that person shall not live. In the presence of our relatives, see for yourself whether there is anything of yours here with me; and if so, take it.” Now Jacob did not know that Rachel had stolen the gods. 
33 So Laban went into Jacob’s tent and into Leah’s tent and into the tent of the two female servants, but he found nothing. After he came out of Leah’s tent, he entered Rachel’s tent. 34 Now Rachel had taken the household gods and put them inside her camel’s saddle and was sitting on them. Laban searched through everything in the tent but found nothing. 
35 Rachel said to her father, “Don’t be angry, my lord, that I cannot stand up in your presence; I’m having my period.” So he searched but could not find the household gods. 
36 Jacob was angry and took Laban to task. “What is my crime?” he asked Laban. “How have I wronged you that you hunt me down? 37 Now that you have searched through all my goods, what have you found that belongs to your household? Put it here in front of your relatives and mine, and let them judge between the two of us. 
38 “I have been with you for twenty years now. Your sheep and goats have not miscarried, nor have I eaten rams from your flocks. 39 I did not bring you animals torn by wild beasts; I bore the loss myself. And you demanded payment from me for whatever was stolen by day or night. 40 This was my situation: The heat consumed me in the daytime and the cold at night, and sleep fled from my eyes. 41 It was like this for the twenty years I was in your household. I worked for you fourteen years for your two daughters and six years for your flocks, and you changed my wages ten times. 42 If the God of my father, the God of Abraham and the Fear of Isaac, had not been with me, you would surely have sent me away empty-handed. But God has seen my hardship and the toil of my hands, and last night he rebuked you.” 
43 Laban answered Jacob, “The women are my daughters, the children are my children, and the flocks are my flocks. All you see is mine. Yet what can I do today about these daughters of mine, or about the children they have borne? 44 Come now, let’s make a covenant, you and I, and let it serve as a witness between us.” 
45 So Jacob took a stone and set it up as a pillar. 46 He said to his relatives, “Gather some stones.” So they took stones and piled them in a heap, and they ate there by the heap. 47 Laban called it Jegar Sahadutha, and Jacob called it Galeed.  
48 Laban said, “This heap is a witness between you and me today.” That is why it was called Galeed. 49 It was also called Mizpah,  because he said, “May the Lord keep watch between you and me when we are away from each other. 50 If you mistreat my daughters or if you take any wives besides my daughters, even though no one is with us, remember that God is a witness between you and me.” 
51 Laban also said to Jacob, “Here is this heap, and here is this pillar I have set up between you and me. 52 This heap is a witness, and this pillar is a witness, that I will not go past this heap to your side to harm you and that you will not go past this heap and pillar to my side to harm me. 53 May the God of Abraham and the God of Nahor, the God of their father, judge between us.” 
So Jacob took an oath in the name of the Fear of his father Isaac. 54 He offered a sacrifice there in the hill country and invited his relatives to a meal. After they had eaten, they spent the night there. 
55 Early the next morning Laban kissed his grandchildren and his daughters and blessed them. Then he left and returned home.  
Applications and Main Idea:
1. This story shows God’s abiding care and blessing on Jacob’s life.
2. This story demonstrates God’s faithfulness in keeping his promised word to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
3. This story shows the importance of the chosen land that has been promised to Abraham and his descendants. Abraham’s descendants are to dwell in Canaan. Even when they are away for a time, Canaan is their home.
4. This story foreshadows the exodus of God’s people and Jacob’s descendants the Israelites when they leave a difficult sojourn in a foreign land to return home wealthier and more numerous than when they left.
Main Idea: God watches over his people, even in times of suffering. He will not forsake them, and in his appointed time he will bless them and bring them home.

“Jacob Prospers”

“Jacob Prospers” (Genesis 30:25–43)
Pastor Cameron Jungels
Eastside Baptist Church
Sunday PM, July 10, 2016
 
Genesis 30:25–43 (NIV)
25 After Rachel gave birth to Joseph, Jacob said to Laban, “Send me on my way so I can go back to my own homeland. 26 Give me my wives and children, for whom I have served you, and I will be on my way. You know how much work I’ve done for you.”
27 But Laban said to him, “If I have found favor in your eyes, please stay. I have learned by divination that the Lord has blessed me because of you.” 28 He added, “Name your wages, and I will pay them.”
29 Jacob said to him, “You know how I have worked for you and how your livestock has fared under my care. 30 The little you had before I came has increased greatly, and the Lord has blessed you wherever I have been. But now, when may I do something for my own household?”
31 “What shall I give you?” he asked.
“Don’t give me anything,” Jacob replied.“But if you will do this one thing for me, I will go on tending your flocks and watching over them: 32 Let me go through all your flocks today and remove from them every speckled or spotted sheep, every dark-colored lamb and every spotted or speckled goat. They will be my wages. 33 And my honesty will testify for me in the future, whenever you check on the wages you have paid me. Any goat in my possession that is not speckled or spotted, or any lamb that is not dark-colored, will be considered stolen.”
34 “Agreed,” said Laban. “Let it be as you have said.” 35 That same day he removed all the male goats that were streaked or spotted, and all the speckled or spotted female goats (all that had white on them) and all the dark-colored lambs, and he placed them in the care of his sons. 36 Then he put a three-day journey between himself and Jacob, while Jacob continued to tend the rest of Laban’s flocks.
37 Jacob, however,took fresh-cut branches from poplar, almond and plane trees and made white stripes on them by peeling the bark and exposing the white inner wood of the branches. 38 Then he placed the peeled branches in all the watering troughs, so that they would be directly in front of the flocks when they came to drink. When the flocks were in heat and came to drink, 39 they mated in front of the branches. And they bore young that were streaked or speckled or spotted. 40 Jacob set apart the young of the flock by themselves, but made the rest face the streaked and dark-colored animals that belonged to Laban. Thus he made separate flocks for himself and did not put them with Laban’s animals. 41 Whenever the stronger females were in heat, Jacob would place the branches in the troughs in front of the animals so they would mate near the branches, 42 but if the animals were weak, he would not place them there. So the weak animals went to Laban and the strong ones to Jacob. 43 In this way the man grew exceedingly prosperous and came to own large flocks, and female and male servants, and camels and donkeys.
 
1.1 1. Jacob fulfills his contractual obligations to Laban and desires to take his wives, children, and possessions and leave (25–26).
 
2.          2. Laban desires for Jacob to stay because the Lord’s blessings on Jacob have overflowed on him as well (27–28).
 
3.    3. Jacob desires to work for more than wages and the price of his wives. He wants to build his own household possessions and flocks (29–30).
 
4.    4. Jacob and Laban come to an agreement in which Jacob will keep all the spotted and dark colored sheep/goats for himself as his own while he maintains Laban’s flocks (31–36).
 
5.     5. Jacob wisely outmaneuvers Laban, and God causes Jacob’s flocks to grow to be more numerous than Laban’s while under his care (37–43).
 
Textual Main Idea: In fulfillment of the Abrahamic covenant, God blessed Abraham’s grandson Jacob and caused him to prosper with flocks, servants, and wealth as he did Abraham and Isaac before him, and Jacob’s prosperity ended up spilling over to Laban as well.
 
Applications/Lessons
 
1.    1. God delights in using his people to bless others around them.
 
2.  2. In keeping with his promises, God faithfully blesses his people and cares for them.
 
3.  3. We can’t rush God’s timing for blessing.
 
Sermon Main Idea: Because God is merciful and faithful, he blesses and prospers his covenant people, and he often uses his covenant people to be a blessing to others around them.

“Jacob’s House”

“Jacob’s House” (Genesis 29:31–30:24)
Pastor Cameron Jungels
Eastside Baptist Church
Sunday PM, July 3, 2016
Genesis 29:31–30:24 (NIV) 
31 When the Lord saw that Leah was not loved, he enabled her to conceive, but Rachel remained childless. 32 Leah became pregnant and gave birth to a son. She named him Reuben,  for she said, “It is because the Lord has seen my misery. Surely my husband will love me now.” 
33 She conceived again, and when she gave birth to a son she said, “Because the Lord heard that I am not loved, he gave me this one too.” So she named him Simeon.  
34 Again she conceived, and when she gave birth to a son she said, “Now at last my husband will become attached to me, because I have borne him three sons.” So he was named Levi.  
35 She conceived again, and when she gave birth to a son she said, “This time I will praise the Lord.” So she named him Judah.  Then she stopped having children. 
30 When Rachel saw that she was not bearing Jacob any children, she became jealous of her sister. So she said to Jacob, “Give me children, or I’ll die!” 
2 Jacob became angry with her and said, “Am I in the place of God, who has kept you from having children?” 
3 Then she said, “Here is Bilhah, my servant. Sleep with her so that she can bear children for me and I too can build a family through her.” 
4 So she gave him her servant Bilhah as a wife. Jacob slept with her, 5 and she became pregnant and bore him a son. 6 Then Rachel said, “God has vindicated me; he has listened to my plea and given me a son.” Because of this she named him Dan.  
7 Rachel’s servant Bilhah conceived again and bore Jacob a second son. 8 Then Rachel said, “I have had a great struggle with my sister, and I have won.” So she named him Naphtali.  
9 When Leah saw that she had stopped having children, she took her servant Zilpah and gave her to Jacob as a wife. 10 Leah’s servant Zilpah bore Jacob a son. 11 Then Leah said, “What good fortune!” So she named him Gad.  
12 Leah’s servant Zilpah bore Jacob a second son. 13 Then Leah said, “How happy I am! The women will call me happy.” So she named him Asher.  
14 During wheat harvest, Reuben went out into the fields and found some mandrake plants, which he brought to his mother Leah. Rachel said to Leah, “Please give me some of your son’s mandrakes.” 
15 But she said to her, “Wasn’t it enough that you took away my husband? Will you take my son’s mandrakes too?” 
“Very well,” Rachel said, “he can sleep with you tonight in return for your son’s mandrakes.” 
16 So when Jacob came in from the fields that evening, Leah went out to meet him. “You must sleep with me,” she said. “I have hired you with my son’s mandrakes.” So he slept with her that night. 
17 God listened to Leah, and she became pregnant and bore Jacob a fifth son. 18 Then Leah said, “God has rewarded me for giving my servant to my husband.” So she named him Issachar.  
19 Leah conceived again and bore Jacob a sixth son. 20 Then Leah said, “God has presented me with a precious gift. This time my husband will treat me with honor, because I have borne him six sons.” So she named him Zebulun.  
21 Some time later she gave birth to a daughter and named her Dinah. 
22 Then God remembered Rachel; he listened to her and enabled her to conceive. 23 She became pregnant and gave birth to a son and said, “God has taken away my disgrace.” 24 She named him Joseph, and said, "May the Lord add to me another son.” 
What is going on with the human characters in this story and what we can learn from them? 
1. Leah’s misguided pursuit (29:31–35)
2. Rachel’s jealousy and selfish rivalry (30:1–8)
3. Leah’s counter-scheme (30:9–13)
4. Leah’s manipulation of Rachel (30:14-21)
5. Rachel blessed and yet dissatisfied (30:22–24)
Where is God in this story?
1. God loves the unloved and has special concern for the downtrodden.
2. God demonstrates grace even to those who are not seeking him with all their heart.
3. God sometimes mercifully answers prayer, even when it is not asked for the right reasons. 
4. God doesn’t need our manipulation or schemes to accomplish his purposes.
5. God was going to build the house of Jacob regardless, but God mercifully uses these two sinful and selfish rival sisters to build the house of Israel. 
6. God is faithful to his covenant. 
11 Then the elders and all the people at the gate said, "We are witnesses. May the LORD make the woman who is coming into your home like Rachel and Leah, who together built up the family of Israel. May you have standing in Ephrathah and be famous in Bethlehem. (Ruth 4:11, NIV)
Textual Main Idea: God mercifully and providentially built the house of Jacob through the sinful, selfish, sibling rivalry between Leah and Rachel as they competed for Jacob’s love by bearing him sons.
Application Main Idea: God mercifully and providentially accomplishes his gracious purposes, even through and in spite of our sinful and selfish actions.

“The Deceiver Deceived”

“The Deceiver Deceived” (Genesis 29:15–30)
Pastor Cameron Jungels
Eastside Baptist Church
Sunday PM, June 26, 2016
Genesis 29:15-30, NIV
     15 Laban said to him, "Just because you are a relative of mine, should you work for me for nothing? Tell me what your wages should be."  
     16 Now Laban had two daughters; the name of the older was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel.        17 Leah had weak eyes, but Rachel had a lovely figure and was beautiful.  18 Jacob was in love with Rachel and said, "I'll work for you seven years in return for your younger daughter Rachel."  
     19 Laban said, "It's better that I give her to you than to some other man. Stay here with me."  20 So Jacob served seven years to get Rachel, but they seemed like only a few days to him because of his love for her.  
     21 Then Jacob said to Laban, "Give me my wife. My time is completed, and I want to make love to her."  
     22 So Laban brought together all the people of the place and gave a feast.  23 But when evening came, he took his daughter Leah and brought her to Jacob, and Jacob made love to her.  24 And Laban gave his servant Zilpah to his daughter as her attendant.  
     25 When morning came, there was Leah! So Jacob said to Laban, "What is this you have done to me? I served you for Rachel, didn't I? Why have you deceived me?"  
     26 Laban replied, "It is not our custom here to give the younger daughter in marriage before the older one.  27 Finish this daughter's bridal week; then we will give you the younger one also, in return for another seven years of work."  
     28 And Jacob did so. He finished the week with Leah, and then Laban gave him his daughter Rachel to be his wife.  29 Laban gave his servant Bilhah to his daughter Rachel as her attendant.  30 Jacob made love to Rachel also, and his love for Rachel was greater than his love for Leah. And he worked for Laban another seven years.  

“God Guides and Provides for Jacob”

“God Guides and Provides for Jacob” (Genesis 29:1–14)
Pastor Cameron Jungels
Eastside Baptist Church
SundayPM, June 12, 2016
 
Genesis 29:1–14 (NIV)
29 Then Jacob continued on his journey and came to the land of the eastern peoples. 2 There he saw a well in the open country, with three flocks of sheep lying near it because the flocks were watered from that well. The stone over the mouth of the well was large. 3 When all the flocks were gathered there, the shepherds would roll the stone away from the well’s mouth and water the sheep.Then they would return the stone to its place over the mouth of the well.
4 Jacob asked the shepherds, “My brothers, where are you from?”
“We’re from Harran,” they replied.
5 He said to them, “Do you know Laban, Nahor’s grandson?”
“Yes,we know him,” they answered.
6 Then Jacob asked them, “Is he well?”
“Yes,he is,” they said, “and here comes his daughter Rachel with the sheep.”
7 “Look,”he said, “the sun is still high; it is not time for the flocks to be gathered.Water the sheep and take them back to pasture.”
8 “We can’t,” they replied, “until all the flocks are gathered and the stone has been rolled away from the mouth of the well. Then we will water the sheep.”
9 While he was still talking with them, Rachel came with her father’s sheep, for she was a shepherd. 10 When Jacob saw Rachel daughter of his uncle Laban,and Laban’s sheep, he went over and rolled the stone away from the mouth of the well and watered his uncle’s sheep. 11 Then Jacob kissed Rachel and began to weep aloud. 12 He had told Rachel that he was a relative of her father and a son of Rebekah. So she ran and told her father.
13 As soon as Laban heard the news about Jacob, his sister’s son, he hurried to meet him.He embraced him and kissed him and brought him to his home, and there Jacob told him all these things. 14 Then Laban said to him, “You are my own flesh and blood.”
And he stayed with him for a whole month.
 
Main Idea: The God we worship is the same God who guided Jacob. He is still providentially watching over our lives.He is still guiding and protecting his people.

“Jacob’s Dream” (Genesis 28:10–22)

“Jacob’s Dream” (Genesis 28:10–22)
Pastor Cameron Jungels
Eastside Baptist Church
Sunday PM, June 5, 2016
Genesis 28:10–22 (NIV) 
10 Jacob left Beersheba and set out for Harran. 11 When he reached a certain place, he stopped for the night because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones there, he put it under his head and lay down to sleep. 12 He had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. 13 There above it stood the Lord, and he said: “I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying. 14 Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south. All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring.  15 I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.” 
16 When Jacob awoke from his sleep, he thought, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I was not aware of it.” 17 He was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God; this is the gate of heaven.” 
18 Early the next morning Jacob took the stone he had placed under his head and set it up as a pillar and poured oil on top of it. 19 He called that place Bethel, though the city used to be called Luz. 
20 Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me and will watch over me on this journey I am taking and will give me food to eat and clothes to wear 21 so that I return safely to my father’s household, then the Lord will be my God 22 and this stone that I have set up as a pillar will be God’s house, and of all that you give me I will give you a tenth.” 
1. God is faithful.
2. God is gracious.
3. God is sovereign.
4. God reveals himself to Jacob.
5. Through God’s gracious revelation, Jacob is changed.
a. He is moved to worship.
b. He is moved to faith.
c. He is moved to consecration. 
Main Idea: When God graciously reveals himself to us, we cannot help but be changed. God’s grace moves us to worship, faith, and consecration.

“Jacob’s Deception for the Blessing” (Genesis 26:34–28:9)

“Jacob’s Deception for the Blessing” (Genesis 26:34–28:9)
Pastor Cameron Jungels
Eastside Baptist Church
Sunday PM, May 22, 2016
1. Those who have become spiritually dim by loving the world’s delights can often overlook glaring flaws in their own family and forget about God’s greater blessings (27:1–4).
2. God’s people need to be patient in waiting on God’s promised blessings, refusing to resort to manipulative practices in an effort to help guide the process along (27:5–24).
3. God’s sovereign purposes will be fulfilled, even in spite of our misguided steps along faith’s journey (27:25–29).
4. Those who disregard God’s promises cannot expect to receive blessing (26:34–35; 28:6­–9; 27:30–40; cf. 25:29–34: Esau sells his birthright).
a. His disregard for his birthright (25:29­–34)
b. His Hittite marriages (26:34–35)
c. His misguided attempts to win back his parents’ favor after the blessing had been given (28:6–9)
5. Disregard for God’s ways often creates strife and conflict between people (27:41–45).
6. God’s grace and his blessings are sovereignly bestowed and unmerited, but we must respond in faith and obey his word (27:46–28:5).
Main Idea: God’s purposes will unfailingly unfold; let us be faithful and obedient participants in the accomplishment of those purposes.

“Like Father, Like Son” (Genesis 26)

“Like Father, Like Son” (Genesis 26)
Pastor Cameron Jungels
Eastside Baptist Church
Sunday PM, May 1, 2016
Genesis 26 (NIV) 
26 Now there was a famine in the land—besides the previous famine in Abraham’s time—and Isaac went to Abimelek king of the Philistines in Gerar. 2 The Lord appeared to Isaac and said, “Do not go down to Egypt; live in the land where I tell you to live. 3 Stay in this land for a while, and I will be with you and will bless you. For to you and your descendants I will give all these lands and will confirm the oath I swore to your father Abraham. 4 I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and will give them all these lands, and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed,  5 because Abraham obeyed me and did everything I required of him, keeping my commands, my decrees and my instructions.” 6 So Isaac stayed in Gerar. 
7 When the men of that place asked him about his wife, he said, “She is my sister,” because he was afraid to say, “She is my wife.” He thought, “The men of this place might kill me on account of Rebekah, because she is beautiful.” 
8 When Isaac had been there a long time, Abimelek king of the Philistines looked down from a window and saw Isaac caressing his wife Rebekah. 9 So Abimelek summoned Isaac and said, “She is really your wife! Why did you say, ‘She is my sister’?” 
Isaac answered him, “Because I thought I might lose my life on account of her.” 
10 Then Abimelek said, “What is this you have done to us? One of the men might well have slept with your wife, and you would have brought guilt upon us.” 
11 So Abimelek gave orders to all the people: “Anyone who harms this man or his wife shall surely be put to death.” 
12 Isaac planted crops in that land and the same year reaped a hundredfold, because the Lord blessed him. 13 The man became rich, and his wealth continued to grow until he became very wealthy. 14 He had so many flocks and herds and servants that the Philistines envied him. 15 So all the wells that his father’s servants had dug in the time of his father Abraham, the Philistines stopped up, filling them with earth. 
16 Then Abimelek said to Isaac, “Move away from us; you have become too powerful for us.” 
17 So Isaac moved away from there and encamped in the Valley of Gerar, where he settled. 18 Isaac reopened the wells that had been dug in the time of his father Abraham, which the Philistines had stopped up after Abraham died, and he gave them the same names his father had given them. 
19 Isaac’s servants dug in the valley and discovered a well of fresh water there. 20 But the herders of Gerar quarreled with those of Isaac and said, “The water is ours!” So he named the well Esek, because they disputed with him. 21 Then they dug another well, but they quarreled over that one also; so he named it Sitnah. 22 He moved on from there and dug another well, and no one quarreled over it. He named it Rehoboth,  saying, “Now the Lord has given us room and we will flourish in the land.” 
23 From there he went up to Beersheba. 24 That night the Lord appeared to him and said, “I am the God of your father Abraham. Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bless you and will increase the number of your descendants for the sake of my servant Abraham.” 
25 Isaac built an altar there and called on the name of the Lord. There he pitched his tent, and there his servants dug a well. 
26 Meanwhile, Abimelek had come to him from Gerar, with Ahuzzath his personal adviser and Phicol the commander of his forces. 27 Isaac asked them, “Why have you come to me, since you were hostile to me and sent me away?” 
28 They answered, “We saw clearly that the Lord was with you; so we said, ‘There ought to be a sworn agreement between us’—between us and you. Let us make a treaty with you 29 that you will do us no harm, just as we did not harm you but always treated you well and sent you away peacefully. And now you are blessed by the Lord.” 
30 Isaac then made a feast for them, and they ate and drank. 31 Early the next morning the men swore an oath to each other. Then Isaac sent them on their way, and they went away peacefully. 
32 That day Isaac’s servants came and told him about the well they had dug. They said, “We’ve found water!” 33 He called it Shibah, and to this day the name of the town has been Beersheba.  
34 When Esau was forty years old, he married Judith daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and also Basemath daughter of Elon the Hittite. 35 They were a source of grief to Isaac and Rebekah. 
1. Patterns that we establish in our own lives may very well be imitated by those who follow us.
a. Patterns of doubt and deception
b. Patterns of faith and devotion
c. We have a responsibility to try to establish positive patterns of faith and obedience for others to follow, because those who come after us will likely follow in our footsteps.
2. The promises that we have received from God can and should be handed down to the next generation.
a. Isaac is the rightful inheritor of God’s promises to Abraham.
i. Land
ii. Descendants
iii. Blessing to the world
b. We too have been granted promises from God – we have a responsibility to pass these on to the next generation.
3. God’s blessing will be with each generation of his people who walk in faith and obedience before him.

"Esau Trades His Birthright" (Genesis 25:27-34)

"Esau Trades His Birthright" (Genesis 25:27-34)
Pastor Cameron Jungels
Eastside Baptist Church
Sunday PM, April 24, 2016
Genesis 25:27–34 (NIV)

27 The boys grew up, and Esau became a skillful hunter, a man of the open country, while Jacob was content to stay at home among the tents. 28 Isaac, who had a taste for wild game, loved Esau, but Rebekah loved Jacob.

29 Once when Jacob was cooking some stew, Esau came in from the open country, famished. 30 He said to Jacob, “Quick, let me have some of that red stew! I’m famished!” (That is why he was also called Edom.)

31 Jacob replied, “First sell me your birthright.”

32 “Look, I am about to die,” Esau said. “What good is the birthright to me?”

33 But Jacob said, “Swear to me first.” So he swore an oath to him, selling his birthright to Jacob.

34 Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and some lentil stew. He ate and drank, and then got up and left.

So Esau despised his birthright.

"The Lord Chooses Jacob" (Genesis 25:19-26)

"The Lord Chooses Jacob" (Genesis 25:19-26)
Pastor Cameron Jungels
Eastside Baptist Church
Sunday PM, April 17, 2016
Genesis 25:19–26 (NIV)

19 This is the account of the family line of Abraham’s son Isaac.

Abraham became the father of Isaac, 20 and Isaac was forty years old when he married Rebekah daughter of Bethuel the Aramean from Paddan Aram  and sister of Laban the Aramean.

21 Isaac prayed to the Lord on behalf of his wife, because she was childless. The Lord answered his prayer, and his wife Rebekah became pregnant. 22 The babies jostled each other within her, and she said, “Why is this happening to me?” So she went to inquire of the Lord.

23 The Lord said to her,

“Two nations are in your womb,

and two peoples from within you will be separated;

one people will be stronger than the other,

and the older will serve the younger.”

24 When the time came for her to give birth, there were twin boys in her womb. 25 The first to come out was red, and his whole body was like a hairy garment; so they named him Esau.  26 After this, his brother came out, with his hand grasping Esau’s heel; so he was named Jacob.  Isaac was sixty years old when Rebekah gave birth to them.
1. God provides for the continuation of his promises by supernatural grace (19-21).
2. God chooses the recipient of the promises by sovereign grace (22-23).
3. God's people must respond in faith to the outworking of God's sovereign plans (24-26).
Main Idea: Those who owe their existence to sovereign creation and divine election must be able to respond in faith and acknowledge the hand of God in the circumstances of life.

"Abraham's Final Days" (Genesis 25:1-18)

"Abraham's Final Days" (Genesis 25:1-18)
Pastor Cameron Jungels
Eastside Baptist Church
Sunday PM, April 10, 2016
Genesis 25:1–18 (NIV) 25 Abraham had taken another wife, whose name was Keturah. 2 She bore him Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak and Shuah. 3 Jokshan was the father of Sheba and Dedan; the descendants of Dedan were the Ashurites, the Letushites and the Leummites. 4 The sons of Midian were Ephah, Epher, Hanok, Abida and Eldaah. All these were descendants of Keturah.
5 Abraham left everything he owned to Isaac. 6 But while he was still living, he gave gifts to the sons of his concubines and sent them away from his son Isaac to the land of the east.
7 Abraham lived a hundred and seventy-five years. 8 Then Abraham breathed his last and died at a good old age, an old man and full of years; and he was gathered to his people. 9 His sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him in the cave of Machpelah near Mamre, in the field of Ephron son of Zohar the Hittite, 10 the field Abraham had bought from the Hittites.  There Abraham was buried with his wife Sarah. 11 After Abraham’s death, God blessed his son Isaac, who then lived near Beer Lahai Roi.
12 This is the account of the family line of Abraham’s son Ishmael, whom Sarah’s slave, Hagar the Egyptian, bore to Abraham.
13 These are the names of the sons of Ishmael, listed in the order of their birth: Nebaioth the firstborn of Ishmael, Kedar, Adbeel, Mibsam, 14 Mishma, Dumah, Massa, 15 Hadad, Tema, Jetur, Naphish and Kedemah. 16 These were the sons of Ishmael, and these are the names of the twelve tribal rulers according to their settlements and camps. 17 Ishmael lived a hundred and thirty-seven years. He breathed his last and died, and he was gathered to his people. 18 His descendants settled in the area from Havilah to Shur, near the eastern border of Egypt, as you go toward Ashur. And they lived in hostility toward all the tribes related to them.