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Now, the story goes on here in Genesis 37, but notice what it says in verse 29.
And Reuben returns onto the pit. Returned onto the pit? Where did you go? Put yourself
in this situation. You're the older brother. Your brothers say they're going to kill
your brother Joseph. It's like, hey, don't kill him. Toss him into this pit. I'll
see you later. Like, what are you doing? Wouldn't you think that he would just
stay there and make sure nothing took place? Like, what is he doing? It's his job to protect
and then he's not there. I mean, the Bible says a brother is born for adversity, meaning
that your brother or your sister don't need you when times are good, but in times of adversity,
in times of difficulty, that's when you rise to the occasion. That's what you're born for.
That's what you're responsible for. But Reuben is like, hey, don't kill him. Toss him into
this pit. I'm going to go out and just, I don't know, go for a jog for a couple
hours. I'll be back. It's like, literally, what is he doing? As the older brother,
he could send somebody else to do whatever, and then he comes back, and what's taking place?
They've already sold him into slavery. It says here, and Reuben returned onto the pit,
and behold, Joseph was not in the pit, and he rent his clothes.
So the Bible says that Reuben rent his clothes, and renting or tearing your clothes is a sign of
mourning in the Bible. It's like, we were just talking about this yesterday at church,
because in the U.S., the Republicans had their national convention, and Hulk Hogan,
for those of you that watched wrestling as a kid, Hulk Hogan was one of the speakers,
and he rent his clothes as he's speaking, and that's what it reminds me of.
But Reuben rents or tears his clothes out of mourning, and you would think that maybe
he's just a little bit Bobo, and maybe he wasn't thinking, but he really cares about his brother,
but notice the next verse. He returned onto his brother and said, the child is not,
and whither shall I go? He doesn't say, the child is not, and what's going to happen?
We better go after him. He's like, whither shall I go? What am I going to do?
Why is Reuben concerned about himself? Because he's responsible.
He's the kuya. It's his job. Jacob left him in charge as the oldest brother, and guess what?
He failed. Why did he fail? He gave in to peer pressure, tried to meet him halfway.
Why did he fail? Because he yielded, because he was unstable. He had no stability. Look,
his dad gave him instructions, do this, don't do this, and what takes place?
When the situation comes up, he just kind of yields and meets them halfway,
and what ends up taking place? They sell their brother into slavery.
Now look, I'm not justifying the actions of the brothers, because everybody's at fault for this,
but you know what? We let our kids watch certain things on YouTube,
and they always make Reuben out to be the sympathetic, innocent, godly brother in the
midst. It's like, no, that is not what you're going to come out with if you read Genesis.
You're going to see Reuben was a very selfish, egotistical person that only
cared about himself. Go in your Bible to Proverbs 18. Proverbs 18.
You say, what are you trying to tell us? Here's what I'm trying to tell you.
You kids that are in this room that are in school, here's the thing.
You know what's right. You know what's wrong. Your mom taught you. Your dad taught you. I taught
you. Don't give in to peer pressure. Don't follow a multitude to do evil.
You already know it's wrong to smoke. You already know it's wrong to drink. Don't do it.
Look, I get it. I was homeschooled in middle school, but I was in some classes in high
school, and I get it. It's like you're there. They know you're the kid that doesn't drink.
You don't smoke, and everyone's saying, just try it one time. Just one time.
How about just living a clean and holy life and being stable and saying, no, it's wrong.
It doesn't matter if you make fun of me. I know what's right. I know what's wrong. I'm
not going to do it. Have stability in your life, because look, if you allow yourself to give
in to peer pressure, you will fail in life. Why? Because this type of preaching is not
exactly popular in 2024. This is not what most people are going to agree with.
You know what most people would say about me? You're a hate preacher. Look at you. That's what
they'd say. It's like, well, say whatever you want about me. It doesn't change the fact
that vice pong eat is vice pong eat, not gan da. That's just the way it is.
Disgusting, filthy cross-dresser. No, it's not normal. It doesn't matter how common it is.
No, you say, well, how could you say that? Because I decided a long time ago what I believed
about that topic. I don't care what you tell me, what new study you do, it's not going to
change my opinion. You say, why? Because thus saith the word of God in Genesis 19,
Judges 19, and a whole host of verses on the topic. The Bible says in Proverbs 18, verse 24,
a man that hath friends but show him so friendly, and there is a friend that sticketh
closer than a brother. Now, the idea would be that your brother you would naturally think
is going to stick very close to you and be your helper and is there with you through thick
and thin. That's the way Reuben should be. And this is really a verse that highlights how
great a good friend can be. And of course, I think we understand this in a spiritual sense,
because as much as I love my flesh and blood, I feel closer to my spiritual brothers and
sisters in Christ than I do to unsaved relatives that I have the same bloodline as them.
And that is the way that you should feel. You should feel closer to your spiritual
brothers and sisters in Christ than your physical. Now, if you have a physical brother
or physical sister that is also saved, well, praise the Lord for that. That's great.
You have double the spiritual and physical brother, spiritual and physical sister,
and of course there can be a really close kinship. Like, both of my parents are saved,
and that really helps with forming a close relationship with them where physically I'm
their son, but spiritually I'm their brother in Christ. Right? And praise God for that.
But you should feel closer to those that are your spiritual family than your physical
family. And this is something that's very clear in the Bible, but a lot of people struggle with
this. It's very common here in the Philippines for these massive nuclear families where it's like
you're all in it together. Right? Where people are very close friends with their
unsaved Catholic relatives, and by all means, get your Catholic relatives saved, but guess what?
They're not saved. They've got a false religion. And here's the thing. If they don't
want to hear what the Bible says, and they don't want to serve God, it's like you ought
to feel closer to your brothers and sisters in Christ than your unsaved family. You say,
well, I don't know about that. I think that you ought to feel really close to your family
above anything. Well, Jesus said, I did not come to bring peace but a sword. I came to bring
division. He said, I came to set a man at variance against his father-in-law, a brother
against his sister, all the things that it lists. And the idea is this. You ought to feel
closer to your spiritual family than your physical family.
Go in your Bible to Genesis chapter 42. Genesis 42.
Point number one, Reuben yielded to corruption. He gave in to temptations in his life. Point two,
he yielded in his connections. We're talking about peer pressure. He gave in due to peer
pressure. Point number three, Reuben yielded in his commitments. Reuben was a very
untrustworthy person. He would say something, and his word meant nothing. There's a reason why
Jacob says this about his son Reuben, and we see him yielding into corruption. That's
the example Jacob directly gives. We see him yielding in his connections, but we also see that
Reuben yielded in his commitments. Notice what it says in Genesis 42 verse 36.
And Jacob their father said unto them, Me of ye bereaved of my children,
Joseph is not, and Simeon is not, and ye will take Benjamin away. All these things
are against me. Now to catch you up in the story, obviously Joseph has become very powerful
in Egypt, and they don't realize that Joseph is powerful in Egypt. And so basically Jacob
sends his sons to basically get corn, and when they get there Joseph recognizes them,
and he doesn't forgive them. He's mad at them, and the brothers don't realize.
Throughout the conversation they could probably assume Joseph's dead. They really don't know,
and they are remorseful, but Joseph really has trouble forgiving them. And Joseph says at first,
well you've got to leave somebody with me, and Simeon gets left with all those brothers.
Ask yourself this question. Why was not Reuben the one left?
I mean shouldn't the older brother be the one? Wouldn't you say? You know I have one sister.
I don't have any brothers. You know I'm the youngest in her family, but I would say
if you come from a family and you have a younger brother, don't you as the kuya,
the older brother feel responsible for your younger brothers? If a situation came up,
life or death, it's like you know what? Take me. Spare them. That's the attitude that is built
into you as the older brother, but that's not the way that Reuben felt because Simeon,
the second oldest, is the one that steps up. And so what Joseph requires is that his
the youngest son Benjamin, which is his full brother, comes, and Jacob doesn't want to give
up Benjamin because this is his only son in his mind from Rachel. He figures Joseph is dead. He
said no, but it gets to the point where if they don't go, then they're going to die. They're
going to starve. So it says here in verse 37, and Reuben spake unto his father saying,
Slay my two sons if I bring them not to thee. Deliver them into my hand and I will bring
them to thee again. Reuben's like, Dad, you can trust me. And you know what? If I fail,
just kill my sons. What? Put yourself in this situation. It's like, hey, you know what?
You can trust me, and if I fail, then kill Zeph and Ezra. What? Isn't that pretty bizarre
what he says? Why is that even in your mind? But you know what? Reuben was the sort of
person that just said something, and it meant nothing. And you've met people like this in
your life, haven't you? People that say things, and you can't really trust it. It's like,
hey, you know what? I'm going to do this. In the back of your mind, you're thinking,
I hope, but I can't rely on you. I can't trust you. It's like, you say you're going to
show up at 2 p.m. It's like, maybe you'll show up. Maybe you won't. Right?
I've known plenty of people like that in my life where their word meant nothing.
I work with people where they're just like, hey, you're kind of doing a group assignment.
Hey, you know what? I'll handle this. In the back of your head, you're like,
all right, I better get my job done, and then make sure that they did their job,
because I don't trust them. They're going to not do it, and then blame somebody else.
That's just the way it is. Reuben's like, hey, if I fail, just kill my sons.
Verse 38, and he said, my son shall not go down with you, for his brother is dead,
and he is left alone. If mischief befallen by the way in the which ye go, then shall ye bring
down my gray hairs with sorrow to the grave. Why is it Jacob doesn't listen to Reuben?
Because he realizes Reuben's word means absolutely nothing. He doesn't trust Reuben.
Reuben says things all the time, but he's unstable. He's not trustworthy. He'll say
something, and he yields in his commitments. He makes agreements, and it means nothing.
So when he says this, Jacob's like, okay, whatever. We're not going to send my son
Benjamin with you. Go in your Bible to Genesis 43. Next chapter, Genesis 43.
Genesis 43, verse 8, and Judah said unto Israel's father,
send the lad with me, and we will rise and go that we may live, and not die,
both we and thou and also our little ones. I will be surety for him. Notice how Judah doesn't
say my sons will be surety for you. I will be surety for him. Of my hand shalt thou require
him. If I bring him not unto thee, and set him before thee, then let me bear the blame forever.
For except we had lingered, surely now we had returned this second time. Judah steps up to
the plate. He says, I'm responsible. Number one, why didn't Reuben ever put himself on the line?
Number two, why didn't Levi? Because Levi's older than Judah. Judah steps up to the plate,
and what happens? Jacob trusts him. Why is it that Jacob trusts Judah and not Reuben?
Because Jacob knew. He said this in Genesis 49. Reuben is unstable. He's untrustworthy.
I can't count on him. Yeah, maybe Reuben feels this way now, but when he fails,
all of a sudden he's going to be like, well, no, I didn't say you could kill my sons.
It's like we're responsible, right? That's the way that Reuben was. And so when Reuben says,
kill my sons, guess what? Jacob doesn't really listen to it, doesn't trust his son.
But when Judah says, you know what, I'm responsible, Jacob listens to that. Why?
Because Judah was stable and Reuben was not. Go to Genesis 44. Genesis 44.
It's kind of interesting because Judah is not always the godliest person in the Bible either,
but I think there's a reason why Jesus is the lion of the tribe of Judah and not Reuben.
And this is a large situation why we're basically, although Judah makes terrible mistakes in the past,
here's the thing. He changes and he sincerely cares about his brother and he is willing to step
in and be responsible and bear the blame if something happens. Now here's the thing about
this though. Judah says this, but how do we know if it's really true? Because a lot of
people say things. You could say, hey, I would be willing to die to protect so and so,
but how do we know if that's really true? Well, because in Genesis 44 we see it in action.
Notice what it says in verse 30.
Now therefore, when I come to thy servant, my father, and the lad be not with us,
seeing that his life is bound up in the lad's life, it shall come to pass when he seeth that
the lad is not with us, that he will die, and thy servant shall bring down the gray hairs
of thy servant, our father, with sorrow to the grave. This is Judah speaking.
For thy servant, speaking to Joseph, for thy servant became surety for the lad
unto my father, saying, If I bring him not unto thee, then I shall bear the blame to
my father forever. Notice Judah doesn't say we're responsible. He says I. I put myself
on the line. I'm the one responsible. Let him go. Verse 33, now therefore I pray thee,
Let thy servant abide instead of the lad, a bondman to my lord, and let the lad go up with
his brethren. For how shall I go up to my father, and the lad be not with me? Lest,
peradventure I see the evil that shall come on my father. What you see is that Judah keeps
his commitment. He doesn't yield in his commandments. He says something. His word is
as strong as oak. You can count on it. Reuben, on the other hand, he's unstable. You can't
count on it. Go to Ecclesiastes chapter 5. We'll close up Ecclesiastes 5. Ecclesiastes chapter 5.
And look, you know, think of the example that Jacob gives. Ask yourself,
are you like water? I mean, if you get poured out, do you just kind of flow with whatever
situation? It's like, well, this is what you believe, but when somebody criticized you,
yeah, no, I agree. It's like, you know, we ought to be more kind or whatever.
You know, it's like when the pressure comes in, when the peer pressure comes in,
when the temptations comes in, the corruption, corruption, commitments, and your relationships
that you have, it's like, do you, your connections, do you give in to the situation?
Do you yield to the temptations? Do you give in? Or do you just stay firm and say, no,
this is what I believe? Because, look, it's easier to preach than actually do. All of us
have temptations that come, and there's a reason why the Bible says to resist the devil,
because it's hard. But you ought to have a line in the sand that says, I'm not going to
do this no matter what takes place. Do you give in to peer pressure in your life?
I mean, if you're at work and somebody brings up, you know, religion and says, yeah,
you know what, all of us Christians believe the same thing. We shouldn't really divide.
Do you just kind of nod your head yes, and on the inside you feel guilty because you know
that what they're saying is wrong? Or do you actually just say, well, you know,
I don't agree with that? You know, and you can be polite about it, but it's like,
I'm not going to sit here and say, yes, we all believe the same thing.
Right? Do you yield when peer pressure comes? And young people, this is something you've
got to decide now. What the Bible says about Daniel is he purposed in his heart.
And as you're growing up, especially if you're in the public fool system, you know what's going to
take place? You're going to have a lot of ungodly kids that are going to try to get you to just
try smoking, try drinking. And when you refuse to, you know what takes place? They make fun of
you. They joke. They laugh. I promise you, the vast majority of people, when they smoke their
first cigarette, it's because of peer pressure. And I praise God I've never smoked a cigarette
before because a lot of people get addicted. And why do people do it? Not because they want
to. I mean, do you really think that most people think smoking and drinking really looks
cool? It's like throwing up everywhere, coughing out my lungs, getting cancer, you know,
at a young age. Does that really sound like a cool thing? Why do people do it? Because of
pressure? Peer pressure. But Reuben also yielded in his commitments. He would say one thing,
and it meant nothing. And look, we need to be people that when we say something,
you can be counted on. Don't just say whatever out of your mouth, and then you just break that
commitment that you make. If you say something, you better keep what you said.
Bible says in Ecclesiastes chapter 5, verse 1,
Keep thy foot when thou goes to the house of God, and be more ready to hear than to give the
sacrifice of fools, for they consider not that they do evil. Be not rash with thy mouth,
and let not thine heart be hasty to utter anything before God. For God is in heaven and
now upon earth, therefore let thy words be few. What the Bible's saying is don't just utter
something out of your mouth and make a commitment and make a vow and then break it.
Pastor, why don't we have an old-fashioned altar call at the church? Because it causes people to
make commitments that they're going to break. That they don't mean that they get emotional,
and they make a vow and a promise to God that they're going to end up breaking.
Bible says be very careful to make these sorts of vows that you make, and when you say
something, do it. Another name for this sermon is don't be a Reuben. Don't be a Reuben.
I think the name Reuben sounds kind of cool, so I'm not against you if your name's Reuben
or whatever, or people that are out there that are named Reuben, but don't be like Reuben in
your life because he yielded to corruption. He yielded in his connections. He gave into
peer pressure, and he yielded in his commitments that he made. Let's close the word of prayer.
Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for allowing us to be here today, and I ask you to help
us to apply this sermon to our lives, including myself and my family. God, help us to just
make decisions about what we believe and what we stand for. Help us not yield when it comes to
temptations that come, corruptions, commitments, or connections, God. Help us just stand firm
in what we believe, and help us all develop stability in our lives. We pray these things
in Jesus' name. Amen.
The Lord warns our passions of doom.
Look ever to Jesus. He will carry you through.
Ask the seeker to help you. Fall for strength and in need of you.
He is speaking to need you.
He will carry you through.
Chant evil companions.
Language this name.
God's name hold in reverence.
Lord, take it in fame.
Be thoughtful in earnest.
Light hearted and true.
Look ever to Jesus.
He will carry you through.
Ask the seeker to help you.
Fall for strength and in need of you.
He is speaking to need you.
He will carry you through.
To him that art common.
God gave him a crown.
To make me shall conquer.
Go off and test out.
He who is our savior.
Our strength will renew.
Look ever to Jesus.
He will carry you through.
Ask the seeker to help you.
Fall for strength and in need of you.
He is speaking to need you.
He will carry you through.
He is speaking to need you.
Fall for strength and in need of you.
Look ever to Jesus.
He will carry you.
Fall for strength and in need of you.
He will carry you.
Fall for strength and in need of you.
He will carry you through.
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Thank you for watching!