Genesis chapter 29 tonight of course this is the story of Jacob and how he
ended up working for one wife and ended up with two and what I like about this
chapter is that you actually get to see some of Jacob's finer qualities
here you know we kind of get introduced to him in the previous
chapters he might start out thinking this guy isn't such a great guy and
obviously no one's perfect but you know when you get into chapter 29 I
think you start to see some of his more admirable attributes and then of course
you get a good look at the type of guy Laban is and he's not you know a very
straightforward guy but let's just get into the story and I have just a few
points tonight and I'll make you know immediate application to one group
and then I'll try to make a broader application to everybody but the first
thing I want us to notice and tonight I'll be preaching you know maybe a
sermon more directed towards young men young men and just men in general but
you know obviously something we can apply to everybody which is again what
I'll try to do towards the end of the sermon but the first thing I want
us to notice in the story is Jacob's power Jacob's power and the right where
I get that is the fact that if you look there in the Bible it says in
verse 1 and Jacob went on his journey and came to land of the people
the east and he looked and behold a well in the field and lo there were
three flocks of sheep lying by it for out of that well they watered the flocks
and a great stone was upon the well's mouth so you have these multiple
flocks three flocks of sheep that are there obviously each flock is
probably going to have its own Shepherd its own people that are
keeping that flock and that's why it says there at the end of verse 2
they watered the flocks and a great stone was upon the well's mouth right
so again there's a group of people there and noticed it says in verse 3 and
thither were all to get the flocks gathered and they rolled the stone from
the well's well well's mouth and water the sheep and put the stone again
upon the well's mouth in his place so it says that they did this right
they're the ones that are moving the stone meaning it's not just one
person that does this takes a multitude of people verse 4 and Jacob said of
them my brethren whence be and they said of heron are we and he said of them
know ye Laban the son of Nahor and they said we know him and he said of them
is he well and they said he is well and behold Rachel his daughter cometh
with the sheep and he said lo it is yet high day neither is it yet come that
the cattle should be gathered together water ye the sheep and go and feed
them and they said we cannot until all the flocks be gathered together
until they roll the stone from the roll's mouth then we water the sheep
right so again somehow we're gonna get everybody together then we're gonna
roll this away right this is where I get my first point okay the first
point is that Jacob's power right notice the plurality when it comes to the
rolling away of the stone it's we do this you know they do this and we see
in verse 9 that Jacob himself rolls away this stone from the well and Jacob
while he excuse me while he had spake with them Rachel came with her
father sheep for she kept them and it came to pass when Jacob saw Rachel
the daughter of Laban his mother's brother and the sheep of Laban his
mother's brother that Jacob went near and rolled the stone from the well's
mouth and the water excuse me and watered the flock of Laban his mother
his mother's brother so again there's nothing that's just accidental in the
Bible the Bible is giving us very specific details and it's allowing us
to make these applications tonight Jacob was a strong man physically he had
physical power right now I don't know that he was like some great you know
Hercules or something like that but obviously he has a certain degree of
strength where he's actually able to do the work you know potentially of
several people you know he's a young man he has this the strength with him
and that is something that we as men should have in our lives and yes I mean
physical strength men should have physical strength and I'm again I'm not
saying we all have to be able to you know dead left two and a half times
our body weight although that would be cool right we don't all have to like
be these power lifters or something that but what the point I want to
make is is that we as men do not want to be weaklings okay we're not all
gonna I get it we're not all gonna be mr. Olympia we're not all gonna be
you know some hulking strong man that's gonna do all these great feats of
strength we're all gonna be a Jacob who's able to do these you know this
this this great feat here right but the point I want us to notice is that
Jacob is a man that has power and we as men should have physical strength
and this is something that the Bible actually emphasizes quite a bit and
this is an important detail today because we're living in a time when people are
trying to feminize men or they're trying to teach men that it's toxic you
know to be masculine that it's toxic to have strength and to act and be a man
okay the Bible says in Proverbs 24 verse 5 that a wise man is strong okay
now there's different ways you could preach that verse you could say well
it's the wisdom of a man that makes them strong and that's true but you
know the the Bible you could also preach this and say well the Bible
says that if you're wise you'll be strong that you'll have physical
strength yea a man of knowledge increases strength okay in first John chapter 2
the Bible says in verse 14 I have written unto you fathers because you
have known him that is from the beginning I have written unto you young
men because ye are strong and the Word of God abideth in you and you
have overcome the wicked one so obviously spiritual strength is something
we're all supposed to have as God's people but you know going into the
sermon what I want us to notice first of all is that men should have physical
strength you know Jacob comes into town and basically just sweeps Rachel
off her feet when you think about I know it takes seven years to get there
but you don't hear her objecting at any point you don't hear her you know
you know throwing up a fuss saying I don't know that she you know I from
everything we see in the story you know she's she loves him too she's
probably looking forward during those seven years of them you know being
husband and wife right and I'm sure one of the things that Rachel found attractive
about Jacob was the fact that he wasn't a weakling that he wasn't just a wimp
right that he had physical strength okay and again I'm not trying
to say you know I gotta keep clarifying myself that you know we have
to all you know be these great you know you know we're not all gonna be
Arnold I get it right it's just you were not one we're not gonna take the
gear that he was on okay and two we all can't live in a gym and just you
know eat ice cream every day or whatever and being a caloric well a lot
of us can be in a caloric surplus you know with or without the gym
that's no problem right but you know the point I'm trying to make is that
you know if you want to attract somebody if you as a man want to you
know win a woman over that's probably a good place to start right there is to
start with physical strength now obviously that's you know it's it's vain
to think that that's that's all it takes we're gonna see her in a minute
that it's not all it takes you know but one of the things that he had one
of the attributes that Jacob had that I believe you know made him an
appealing potential mate to Rachel is the fact that he had physical
strength that he was masculine that he was manly that he you know goes out
and he's any any rolls the stone up and it's funny because people often
will preach the exact opposite about Jacob because it says in the previous
chapter you know that he was a plain man dwelling in tents right that and
they say oh he was he was a mama's boy this does not sound like a mama's
boy it just means he wasn't like Esau that he wasn't dwelling out in the
wilderness in the fields you know he was with the people keeping sheep
doing that hard physical labor is just a different type of work but you read
this chapter and it's just there's no doubt about it that Jacob was a
powerful man that had a certain level of even physical strength right you know I
should probably start clarifying some of these things before I talk about it
with my wife right but you know over you know you know you wonder how did
how did you know a goober like me land you know a wife such as mine right
because my wife is beautiful she's great right how do you how did a guy
like me end up with such a wonderful beautiful woman right well part of it
was because and again I'm not trying to brag myself is that I wasn't weak I
wasn't just you know some sissy right and some cuz sometimes I'll ask her
like what happened like what was it did you hit your head do it were you
are you blind in one eye can't see out the other right and she'll reach
you sometimes she'll tell me like when I saw you working on the church
bus because we had a church bus was it the church bus was that the moment
it all everything just turned around there were other things right but you
know part of it I don't want to go on and on about it but part of it you
know my wife is expressed to me is the fact that I had you know she pulled
into the church one day and there the hood was open on the bus and
there I am getting my hands dirty working on the bus now look guys it
was it was swapping out a heater core on a on a diesel engine on a school
bus it's like all right here you know it's like it was really easy it was
like two bolts there's nothing to it you know don't tell her that though okay
it wasn't like I was you know re you know redoing the the engine or
something right but it was enough and it helped that her dad was a mechanic
right so that was probably part of it too right but you know the point I'm
making is that that was at least something I had going for myself you
know that's probably I didn't have a whole lot more but you know I wasn't
you know just some limp-wristed soft hand just never you know afraid to do any
kind of physical work just just push over you say well you know that's
vanity that's that's stupid that you know women would would look for that in
a man well consider this that women look to men for protection you
know I know that's not popular in our day and age where it's all you know
you can do this gals but the fact is is that men are naturally stronger than
women and that to be a woman you know you have there's a certain level of
fearfulness when it comes around being around strange men like men that you
don't know right there's a certain level of fear and anxiety that comes
with that there it's relieved it's a relief to him when she knows her
husband is somebody that could physically stand up for you know it
isn't a pushover you know or is it gonna is at least gonna buy her some
time right when he's warding off the attacker or attackers right that she's
gonna least like gonna be able to get a get out ahead of him while he's getting
beat down or something right that you know but what they're not looking for
is someone who has no physical prowess whatsoever and this is
important again because this is the day and age we're living in when men
are being a feminized when men are just accentuating all these you know
feminine qualities about them and look there shouldn't be any in a man you
know I'm against men being a feminine the Bible says that for men to be a
feminine is a sin effeminacy is a sin among men looking like a woman talking
like a woman acting like a woman being weak like a woman and look I get women
have strength too but not like a man it's different it's different and you know
and you say well I know you know these strong thick chicks or whatever
you know they're all yeah they're all probably on steroids too right and
they look like a man you know who knows I might be right that you know
that's an exception there's you know the except for the freaks and the
weirdos out there that are you know on you know aren't as much gear as some
of these guys you know and trying to get buff whatever women generally are
vast majority of them weaker than than most men right just facts okay and we
don't that you know that's why we don't want men to be effeminate and let
me let me park it on this one right here this is why you know I I think
it's a feminine for men to have long hair I think it's a feminine in our
culture for men to wear you know feminine colors like pink you're never
gonna catch me putting on pink it's never gonna happen I won't even wear
pink underwear I won't wear pink socks I won't wear something pink that
you won't even see if my white undershirt gets mixed in with the red
it comes out a little pink I'm gonna say throw it away I can't believe that I
can't mean you're so you know bent on pink you know I can't believe you
think that's such a such a thing you know it's some cultures pink isn't it
well you know if I'm living in that culture then then that's fine but I'm
living in this culture right where when women have a baby shower for their
unborn baby girl there's a lot of pink involved because that's associated
with girls and blue with boys like we this isn't news to anybody right and yet
today you have guys donning pink you know growing out their hair like a woman
how about this piercings you know earrings on dudes it's a feminine you
know I don't care you know what the hip-hop culture is into now you got
chicks wearing rings in their nose you can't it's like everywhere you go you
got women with rings in their nose it's disgusting it's so gross I can't
remember where we went the other day and I was like oh it was a first watch and
I love first watch you know guys I love me some first watch but I said to
somebody let's go to first watch and count the nose rings because you
know first watch is kind of like one of these trendy hit places right and
you go in there and it's just like nose ring nose ring nose ring and you
know it's the same type of chicks that get those like they will look like a
walking sketch pad right they have like they're just the random like black and
white tattoos on their arms it's like it's not even connected doesn't make
sense it's like someone's just doodling on their arm in different
spots you know and it's like that's what women are doing but mark it down
that's what men will be doing ten years from now that men will start
wearing you know nose rings some of them already do you know they'll start
doing everything that the women do you know they start wearing pink they'll
start growing their hair out you know getting their top knots I'm against
it okay why cuz it's a feminine that's enough that's enough reason right there
men should look like men they should act like men and they should be strong
that is something the Bible teaches that men should be strong she has some
physical strength you know it might help you in your search for a wife if
you're looking for one to have a certain level of physical strength and
and I get and I'm not again I'm not trying to say we all have to be like
these you know shredded you know underwear models or something like that
you know I'm like I'm just saying you should have some strength you know you
should every time the wind blows you shouldn't be looking for a pole to grab
onto or a tree right and look I and I know what this is like is believe
or not there was a time where I was still I was six two and like under 200
pounds I know that's hard to believe but my early 20s before my
metabolism you know you know shut down right when I had the metabolism of
a of a gerbil right where I could just eat anything and it just nothing would
stick right and I was walking around like 160 170 like it's like you wonder
why it took so long for you to finally find a wife well you know it's
like I had to put some some muscle on the bone right and develop some
strength okay I know what I'm talking about here I've been through it okay
men should have physical strength and if we don't you know maybe it's time to
you know hit the gym maybe it's time to grab the weights maybe it's time to
to put on some muscle and get some physical strength I don't want to spend
all night on that but notice first of all in our sermon Jacob's power Jacob
had physical power okay he's moving the stone you know Jacob has his
physical strength and it's enough for him to you know get the girl and why
is that because you know physical strength projects potential right to a
woman as a husband as a provider if you have physical strength you know not
just physical strength but you know obviously if you're not a pushover if
you have a backbone that goes a long way you know you're not gonna let
people talk to you certainly you command respect like women pick up on
that stuff right this projects to them potential in in a meet right the
Bible says in Psalms 127 verse 3 lo children and heritage of the Lord and
the fruit of the womb is his reward as arrows are in the hand of a mighty man
so are the children of the youth right it's if they're in the hand of a mighty
man you know God you have to have strength to be able to raise
children bring them into this world and then to conduct them you know and
actually put them out in the world as an arrow that's something that's
gonna go and hit a mark is something that is gonna be you know projected
beyond your own ears that takes a certain level of yes even physical
strength but even you know spiritual strength and character to be able to
provide to be able to protect you know in the case of Psalm 127 to be
able to propel right to to lift up others around you and carry them let's
look at the next attribute of Jacob here okay we saw first of all his
power the next thing I want to notice is his patience his patience if you
look in Genesis 29 verse 15 it says in Lake and and Laban said unto Jacob
because thou art my brother shouldest thou therefore serve me for not right
because he's been with him for the for a month at this point in the story and
he's working and laban seeing the potential that this guy has he's a
hard worker and he says let I want to keep this guy around tell me what
thy wages shall be saying I want to hire you right and notice this is after
a month you know the Bible says in all labor there is profit you know if
we show up and work hard you know someone will notice you know even if we're
even if it's just God will labor unto the Lord you know we shall of the Lord
receive a reward okay that's a good principle right there you know laban
notices after monthly this guy is in a slacker he's got strength he's able
to keep up he's doing a good job I want to hire this guy right and laban
had two daughters the name of the elder was Leah and the name of the
younger was Rachel but Leah was tender-eyed but Rachel was beautiful and
well favored so Rachel's kind of you know she's the more she's the better
looking one between the two and she's well favored and she's beautiful but
it says that Leah was tender-eyed and that's just the Bible is just a
nice that's a nice way of saying you know that she was maybe on the
homelier side right she wasn't she didn't have a lot of physical beauty
right to most people right that's why it says of Rachel she was well favored I
mean people are showing her favor like she's well favored in the eyes of
other people which again goes back to you know the fact that that Jacob has
certain qualities that wins the girl right Rachel's well favored you know
the Bible is the one narrating and saying hey she was beautiful meaning
everybody else knew this about her you don't think there were some other
shepherd boys there when Jacob showed up that were you know into Rachel
maybe hoping to be the guy that was gonna to land Rachel and then this guy
comes in from out of town and shakes things up you know just like you just
imagine there was like some kid who like grew up with Rachel's just like
deeply in love with her just want you know it's just daydream about her
all the time couldn't wait right and then Jacob comes into town this big
dude he moves you know what I mean it just you know he comes and grabs the
girl right so all is fair in love and war as they say but you know she's well
favored Rachel is well favored but Leah is tenderized right meaning she
wasn't people weren't you know looking on her very much and Jacob loved
Rachel and said I will serve the seven years for the Rachel for Rachel
the younger daughter now who said this this is this is the deal that
Jacob strikes with him right Jacob pipes up says I'll serve you seven years
for Rachel that mean that's that was his idea right and see Jacob has
patience right and again the sermon this morning this evening is really
geared towards those that perhaps are looking for a wife right or and and
there's a there's a clue right there it's not gonna happen overnight don't
get despondent just because you know it's been seven weeks you know I've been
going to the gym and working out you know in seven weeks it's been seven
months you know I started going to church when I was you know right
shortly after my 21st birthday I got saved a year later I was in church so
after my 22nd birthday I got married at 29 right so I was kind of a Jacob in
a way you know at least in one respect right you know seven years right
about seven and a half years that I was in a church and you know my wife
wasn't there from day one in fact there were for a while there there were
no prospects none zero right you guys think you have it so hard right there's
no girls it's like there's girls walk around all over the place
especially up in Tempe there's girls at other churches they're there you
know there's girls in this city everywhere right but you know Jacob here
he's the one that says hey I'll serve you seven years he and you know what
possesses this man today well there's something you know Rachel's beautiful
she's well favored she's the girl right she's the homecoming queen or
whatever she's the one that all the guys are you know wanting for their
wife and he says well I'll put in seven years labor that means this guy
had an incredible deal of patience I mean I don't know I'd be willing to do
anything for seven years you know I mean I've done things for seven years
but I didn't volunteer to do it right like you look back and like whoa seven
years went by right but this is he's the one that's like you know
Laban's coming to him and saying what are your wages what do you want he
says well I'll serve you seven years for your daughter right this is a
guy who has a lot of patience right and it says there in verse 19 and Laban
said it is better that I give her to thee than I that I should give her to
another man abide with me and Jacob served seven years for Rachel so he
wasn't kidding and notice how what it was like to him it wasn't this
long drudgery right and they seemed unto him but a few days I mean the
time just flew by right for the love he had to her you know this this speaks to
the fact that you know if we have like a goal if we're actually moving towards
a goal that helps life it's easier to live life if we're just kind of
floundering and aren't don't have any direction in life that's when life
becomes a drudgery to us right and obviously his goal here hit what he's
got on the horizon what he's looking forward to is that he gets Rachel right
he has this goal that he knows if he puts in the time it's guaranteed and
look we can apply that you know into the to having patience but also there's
the application of you know in life you need to have a goal we have to be
moving towards something especially men you know especially men what men when
we don't have anything that we're aiming at moving towards no goals
anything we're trying to achieve or get better at or acquire you know we
become listless you know we become despondent you know we become you know
depressed angry resentful all these things right it's not it's not good for
us to not have goals we should have something on the horizon so the other
thing I want to point out here is that not only does Jacob have patience
right he serves these seven years and they seem like a few days to him
but think consider the fact this is Jacob he's a young man right meaning you
know I mean he's moving the stone he's got a you know when you're younger
you've got all this these hormones you've got a certain level of
testosterone in your system right he's just got like a leaner of
testosterone just pumping through his veins at all times right so he's he's
having all those natural feelings that come along with that right but he
shows self-restraint during those seven years you don't read him about him
going off and committing fornication or getting into sin that's part of the
patience that he had he had power and he had patience but it's dem his patience
is demonstrating the fact that he had self-control that he had restraint and
this is something also that we as men and young men need to have right
don't fall into this you know don't fall into this trap of being a
feminine but also don't fall into this trap of being this super macho you
know whoremonger basically that's the way with the Bible uses you know
there's a lot of whoremongers that around us too we're surrounded by guys
that you know are just going out there to the bars you know they might
have the machismo that they need right they they're not a feminine
they're strong they have all these positive qualities as far as masculinity
go for them but then they're using that to just go out there and defile
themselves with as many women as they can you know Jacob not only was he
strong and had strength but he's he was patient and he had self-restraint okay
the Bible says in 1st Timothy that the law is made amongst several other
things for whoremongers right and those that defile themselves with
mankind you know being a fornicator being a whore or being a whoremonger God
looks at that and it's called you know it's unclean it's uncleanness in
fact that's why it says that he it's considered defiling yourself with
mankind you know there's nothing to envy what's going on at the at the bars
when the bars let out at the clubs you know there's not what's going on
behind closer there's nothing to envy there it's a shame to speak of
those things which are done them a secret you know what they're doing is
they're defiling themselves they have no self-restraint they have no control so
you know all that power and strength and ability and virility you know it
doesn't really mean anything if you can't direct it if you can't control it
if you can't move it towards something you know we don't want to
become as so many in our society they hedonistic right people are just
they're just all about gratifying the flesh and young men are every bit as
guilty as this as anybody else all they want to do is just you know they
just want to gratify the flesh they just want to go out there and put
another notch on their belt brag to the guys about you know some whore they
picked up not Jacob Jacob is an example of power but he's also an
example of patience right who was reserving himself for one woman you
know I'm not ashamed to get up here and say in front everybody that I have
only been with one woman in my entire life that I was a virgin on my wedding
day I'm not ashamed of that you know and some people they would laugh
at that they would mock that they would scoff that at that they would say
oh I can't believe you know they would they would ridicule me for
something like that you know oh you waited till your wedding night to
actually have relations with you know yeah I did there's you know there's all
these stupid sayings that are out there you know well how do you know how you
know you got a sample of milk before you buy the cow that's one thing I was
told to me when I was coming up as a young man don't you want you want
to try the milk before we buy the cow you know that's stupid it's because
milk's milk my friend at the end of the day milk's milk right so you know
as long as I like the cow hey Samson said we refer to his life as a heifer so
you know I can get away with it tonight right of course things didn't go
very well for Samson either but but that's a stupid philosophy and that's
not biblical that's not what the Bible teaches you know because we
preach a lot about you know young ladies being virgin and pure on their
wedding night and they should be but you know the same goes for men the
same goes for young men they should keep themselves and they should keep
themselves pure they should be very it's a virtue it's something that
should be exalted not looked down upon does it make you less of a man
you know what it you know what it makes you not a whoremonger that's what
it makes you it makes you somebody who's you know not sleeping around not
gonna carry some you know STD into his marriage not gonna carry a bunch of you
know scars and emotional baggage that comes from those relationships into his
marriage that's what it makes you there's nothing wrong with it you know
that's that's that's what Jacob is exemplifying here I believe that oh yeah
well of course he you know he was he was always just Rachel because you
know he was a mama's boy no no get remember the details he's got power
Rachel is the girl you know she's well favored and beautiful you know they
were probably lining up you know they were she probably had multiple suit
who knows right but you know Jacob stepped up and you know he had these
attributes he had patience and he was able to win the girl but you know
what he didn't use all that strength and ability that he had to just go out
and gratify himself and satisfy the lust of the flesh and just give in to all
this temptation you know he had patience he had self-restraint it's a
masculine quality to be able to say no even to yourself and the Bible says a
lot about whoremongers I've got several verses here let me just blow
through these very quickly Hebrews 13 marriage is honorable and all and the
bed undefiled but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge Ephesians 5
fornication and all uncleanness or covetousness not let it once and not
it not be once named among you has become a Saints don't covet the what the
these fornicators don't covet a cleanness that's taking place out
there the Bible says in Romans 8 if you live after the flesh you shall die
but if you through the spirit do mortify the deeds of the body he shall
live Colossians 3 verse 5 mortify therefore the member your members
which are upon the earth fornication uncleanness inordinate affection
evil concupiscence and covetousness which is idolatry for which things
the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience God God pours out his
wrath on fornicators and the unclean God is angry with that sin first
Thessalonians 4 this is the will of God even your sanctification that you
should abstain from fornication that every one of you should know how to
possess his vessel in sanctification and honor not in the lust of
concupiscence even as the Gentiles which know not God it should not be once
named among us fornication men and women you know you got to be like
Jacob have the power but also have the patience do like Paul did and and
and strive for the mastery right keep your body under bring it into
subjection right and he said it's a fight he said I therefore so run not
certainly so fight I not as one that beat at the air but I keep under my body
and bringing this objection yeah but you know bringing your flesh into
subjection is difficult it's not easy you know and especially at certain you
know times in our lives and certain seasons of our lives certain sins are
gonna have more pull and more attraction and when we find ourselves
in certain situations when we're young single you know this fornication is
gonna be a much greater temptation just naturally but you know what the
Bible says you should fight against it the Bible says you should mortify
therefore the deeds of your flesh you should not just give into these
things as the Gentiles which know not God so that's what we're looking at
tonight Jacob's finer attributes right some of that some things that are
admirable about him okay his power his patience but I also want to point out
his passion right because he has passion in his life he's not just some
passionous passionless man you know it says that that the seven years that he
labored for her whereas a few days for the great for the love wherewith
he had for her right so he has passion he has this this desire and he
wants to any expresses that you know eventually he and in the story you
could see upset he is right let's just again look at it right because let's
not forget what happened to Jacob right it says there that he bides with them
for a month he gets he makes the deal with laban and laban said it is better
that I give her to thee that I should give her to another man abide
with me he serves the seven years and he fulfills the seven years verse
21 says give me my wife my days are fulfilled laban gathers together they
make a feast so laban knows what the deal is right and it came to pass verse
23 that he took leia his daughter and brought her to him and he went and
unto her and laban gave unto his daughter leia zippa his hand made his
made for and handmade and it came to pass in the morning behold it was
leia right it was maybe it wasn't like you know it was not makeup face
like he's always seen her with her makeup he's like wait a minute now you
look different no it was leia right like he's like this isn't just not you
know getting to see the you know her morning face this is a totally
different person and he and he goes and says what is it that thou has done
unto me did I not serve thee for Rachel he wasn't just like oh okay well
she'll do right he's passionate about this he has he's upset he's angry he's
like I the deal is for Rachel right he's confronting him for it and you know
it's not a good story but it always kind of makes me chuckle a little bit in
verse 26 because laban knows what he's doing just and late how laban just kind
of like well you know and laban said it must not be done in our country
it's like well that would have been nice to know up front like is this is
this a custom you adopted over the last seven years all of a sudden in
your country or has it been this way from the day we struck hands and
decided this is how it's gonna work out and well isn't that convenient right
oh oh yeah I forgot to tell you you know in the fine print there you know we
always give away the elder first to give the younger before the firstborn
like you know Lea is the older obviously but he says fulfill her
her week and I will give thee give thee this also for the service which
thou shalt serve with me yet seven other years right so he makes another
deal and you know you read these stories you don't wonder what's going
on with this like maybe maybe laban you know now that I have several
daughters I can kind of see where laban's coming from like let's get him
out of the house right just seize an opportunity to get one last bill off
of his you know monthly budget I'm kidding girls right it will not happen
that way right one it's illegal but it's not right obviously not right
what he did you know it's funny is that people read Christians read the
story and they go the Bible promotes polygamy it's like no the Bible is just
telling you what happened you know God in the law said that King should not
multiply and multiply wise God said it you know it's man and woman and
these twain shall be one flesh that's it it wasn't you know these
these three these you know these four no he said these twain these two
right man and his wife that's it okay but they'll you know when you hear
people bring up polygamy that are that are you know they're pro polygamy in
theory right they don't actually practice it they're like oh the Bible
teaches polygamy and then they they want to turn to stories like this where
Jacob's literally being tricked into having two wives so but my point is
that you know he has power he has patience but he also has passion right
he wanted Rachel specifically you know and yeah obviously it helped that she
was beautiful but I'm sure over seven years he probably got to know her a
little bit I'm sure it's like they spoke at least I would hope there was
some kind of you know dialogue taking place right they were talking
whatever you know that and that you know he probably fell in love with who
she was as a person too and you can see that in the story that he's
passionate about you know having her specifically and this is something
you know maybe that of course applies to everybody we should even as maybe
more for husbands tonight you know be passionate about your wife be
passionate about that relationship don't take that for granted you know
and express that you know in words physically through actions all of that
that should all be there the Bible commands husbands to love their wives
even as Christ love also love the church and gave himself for it you know
one of the ways men show the fact that they love their wives you know cuz
some of us some men I don't I don't know who okay I knew a man once you
know whether in the flesh I cannot tell you know who perhaps it was not as
vocal in his expressions of love right not a lot of sonnets not all the
soliloquies not a lot of poems being written right and in and his wife and
asked you know you still love me you still love me and it's like well yeah
because I'm sacrificing right because I'm giving up you know I'm providing for a
family well I just gave away who it was right yeah right well that's how we
sometimes as men express this like we express it through our actions you know
we express it through what the things that we do and the fact that we're
faithful and the fact that we you know work hard and put food on the table we
and we provide for our the needs of our family which goes back to my first
point why having power is important have to be able to project the ability
to provide even physically it should be there right women pick up on that
stuff even subconsciously okay but you know sometimes as men we think well
yeah of course I love you I mean just you know I go to work every day
isn't it obvious you know we should not let that be our only expression like
we should make sure that we are also expressing our loves and other because
you know you know all women are different right all women some women
are gonna you know just get all Twitter painted with you get them a
bunch of flowers or something other women you know every flower is a weed
to them they don't really care they you know some of them they you got it
you got to know their love language right they some of them like chocolates
flowers some of them like you know you doing things that they ask you to do
they just hey when you do things for me that shows me that you love me right
but we should look for that as men ways to express you know have passion
in our lives not you know well you know well we've been married for a few
and here's the thing this is especially true for newlyweds you know because
the first two years after two years you know that that's this is just I'm
just being honest folks is that you know the honeymoon is kind of over right
and then it becomes you know marriage you know kids come into the picture and
life kind of changes a little bit that's not an excuse for us as men
or women frankly to just let the passion go out of our marriages you
know that's a lot of times where a lot of problems come from is people
just start to live passionless marriages where there's no even if these
feelings are felt they're not being expressed in ways that the other person
can you know pick up on right jacob is passionate he loves rachel and
again I told you at the beginning this is probably going to be you know
those are some of the more practical kind of down-to-earth applications
tonight be powerful as men have physical strength be patient young men
you know can you know learn to possess your vessel in sanctification and honor
and and don't let the whoremongers of this world try to shame you for not
being like them there's there you know it's a virtue to be virgin on your
wedding night it is there's nothing you know it takes strength it takes
power to keep yourself it does and that's that's a that's a masculine
quality okay and you'll spare you a lot of heartache and then God won't have to
pour out his wrath as he does on the on you like he does the children of
disobedience because God counts that all as uncleanness before him but let
me make applications just for Christians in general okay we as
Christians should be powerful in Christ okay you know the Bible says
that God has not given us the spirit of fear but of power and of love and
of a sound mind of power that's the spirit that we have you know we should
have boldness you know sometimes it's okay to go ahead and have the
doctrinal or argument at the door right if you know what's right and
you know how to express it and obviously in the right spirit you know
that that's part of being Christians having boldness stand fit in the Bible
says the first Corinthians stand fast in the faith quit you like men be strong
let all things be done with charity rich you know which again you know
that's power and passion right there we should have power we should be
powerful Christ we should let the Word of God dwell richly within us
with all wisdom we should be strong in the Lord and in the power of his
might so we should be powerful in Christ right but also we should be
patient in Christ in fact go to James chapter 5 will close there James chapter
number 5 because again I you know I made just real specific application
this evening focus more towards men young men husbands right but we could
take these same attributes that that Jacob has in his power and in his
patience and in his passion and apply that to the Christian life for all of
us in general you know have be a powerful Christian don't be one of these
watered-down weak powerless Christians you want to have boldness we want to
have zeal we want to have the power of the Lord you want to do things in
the strength and the might and the power of God we should be bold to
preach the doctrine we should be bold to know our Bibles we should be you
know you know we should know what we believe and be able to express that
that takes boldness you know just the other day at work someone you know
there's there's these guys it kind of gets out at work like who's Christian
who's not right and when these guys you know stop me we're just talking and
he and he brought up the sodomites at work and where I work that's like you
know they have a very skewed view on sodomites and it's not the one that
we have is Baptist let me just say that right and he was kind of like well I
don't know what to think about this and I'm just start telling you know
Romans 1 Jude you know the reprobate and I was I wasn't like preaching a
sermon at him but I was explaining hey you know this is what the Bible
says about them that God has given them over reprobate silver shall men call
them because the Lord hath rejected them you know and he thanked me for
that right and I'm not trying to get lift myself up I just you know the
best examples I have are the ones that I experienced because they're just at
hand okay and I'm sure we've all could have been in similar situations where
you know a co-worker a customer somebody brings up the Bible or some
topic you know and hopefully we have the boldness we have the power we have
you know the Holy Spirit we have the knowledge of the Word of God to be able
to you know show people some things teach people some things just off the
cuff like that you know we could spiritually move some stone for
somebody we don't have to wait for you know if only my deacon and my
pastor and all my church buddies were here way you know they could roll the
stone away for you and we could we could get some water out and I could
refresh your soul it's like no I'm I can be powerful you can be powerful
all of us in Christ and can roll off roll the stone away and give people
water the water a flock you know refresh people so be powerful in
Christ but also be patient in Christ look at James chapter 5 verse 7 be
patient therefore brethren unto the coming of the Lord you know we need to be
patient unto the coming of the Lord and you know what the Lord might not come
in your lifetime the Lord might not come in your lifetime you know he might
he might not come for another hundred two hundred years who knows you know
that's why we just have to be patient and diligently and continually serve God
no matter if if he comes tomorrow or you know you know 200 years from now
who knows but be patient therefore in the coming Lord now let me say this
if the coming of the Lord does come nigh if we are going to experience the
second coming of Christ in our lifetimes you're that that patience
is going to be even more tested right you saw what happened to a bunch of
Christians during COVID some Christians lost their minds during COVID they were
freaking out you know it's like man this isn't even the tribulation like
what what are you gonna do when when the man of sin the son of perdition
is revealed because it's not just gonna be people you know telling you to put
on a mask it's gonna be people you know telling you to come take a mark
you know it's gonna be people you know all manner of things are gonna
happen it's gonna be persecution like this world has never seen you know so
patience whether Christ come or doesn't come in our lifetimes is something we
have to have okay be patient to just determine that you're gonna serve serve
the Lord all the days of your life and look if it happens that Christ does
come back in our lifetimes how much more so are you gonna need that
patience he says in verse 7 behold the husband waited for the precious
fruit of the earth and hath long patience for it until he received the
early and latter rain be he also patient establish your hearts for the
coming of the Lord draweth nigh so it just seems like so long is Jesus
ever gonna come well first of all he's only one breath away you know
he's one you know he's one bus away he's one jerk of the wheel away
right he's just he's just one misstep away he's one work accident when I mean
he's right there it could happen he's one whatever away heart attack
aneurysm I don't know right what are you gonna do until then maybe we'll
all live long full lives are you gonna establish your heart and patiently
serve God are we gonna you know have the power of Christ in our lives and
be patient and serve him or are we gonna you know fade out wither away
give up quit and just go gratify the flesh like everybody else so this is
the application for Christians be powerful in Christ be patient in Christ
be passionate about Christ the Bible says not slothful in business fervent
in spirit serving the Lord be passionate about the things of God be
passionate about your Bible reading be passionate about church serving in
church being faithful to church you know be passionate and bringing other
people to church you know invite folks out bring them out look people are
drawn to passion they are they're drawn to people who are passionate
about whatever it is right if you see somebody is passionate about anything
like it peaks your interest you want to know more about it because people
love when people are passionate about something so if we're not
passionate about our church you know people are gonna sense that what do you
go to church new area where do you go oh it's over here oh this is church
oh well what's it called faith Lord you know it's like oh let me just get
right over there right and look I think you have something to be
passionate about in this church I believe that you know I mean I might
not be the world's greatest preacher but good night it could get a lot
duller it could get a lot duller I've been there I've seen it I've
experienced it okay be passionate about this church be passionate things of
Christ why for the grace of God to bring us salvation at the pier to all
men okay we should we should look at these attributes that that Jacob had
tonight and and however they apply to our lives apply them ask yourself you
know do you have the power to roll that stone away do we as men have the
power to provide for and take care of our families as we ought to I mean we
do believe here what the Bible says when it says that women are to be
keepers at home to got there to guide the house right that means that puts
the burden of bread winning solely on the man's shoulders and let me tell
you something that takes strength today more now more than ever you know
everyone's always complaining about the economy and wages and everything
like that you know that's there's some there's some truth to that
especially in this town yikes don't even get me started right our economy
is not set up for single income families you know they want both of
both of us you know mom and dad working so they can tax both people
right you just you just double the federal income tax that way if you get
both people in the workplace they want the kids off it don't care they want
them off at the you know the public fool system where they can
indoctrinate them there they don't they don't like what we're doing they
don't like you know families that are staying together moms at home raising the
kids homeschooling going to church they don't like that and it takes power
to live that way in this world today it takes physical strength it takes
spiritual strength you know you have to quit you like a man to do that
today you know and it's it's frustrating me sometimes when I see men
Christian men who won't just do what needs to be done to provide for their
family and look I get it it's hard you get burned out you know you get
upset you know everybody else a lot of people can have hobbies and leisure
time and you know they're they're going on these great vacations and doing this
and doing that and you're just you know you're just burning the candle at
both ends but you know what that's what was required of us that's what it
takes today I'm sorry I don't know how else to say it that's reality you
know you know so have power as men and have patience as men as Christians
have self-restraint possess your vessels and be passionate about the
things of God husbands be passionate about your marriage be passionate about
your wives be passionate about you know and even the single guys you know
that's a bit of advice if you can't be passionate about this person she's
not for you you know if there's no if there's no feeling there you know she
checks all the boxes you know she's she's Baptist she's in church you know
I on our first date I sat down I pushed the clipboard across to her and said
check these boxes you know ask these questions how strongly or would you agree
that women should stay at home and bear all my children right five being
strongly agree one being not at all right and it came back all fives she's
just like she's checking all the boxes she's beautiful but there's just no
passion there there's just no feeling well you know what that that's that
needs to be there too okay but we have to have passion in our lives as
Christians too it needs to be there and that's something that waxes and
wanes through the Christian life and and let me just go ahead and you brace
for impact there's gonna be seasons if you haven't expressed experienced
already there's gonna be times where you're wondering why why do it why keep
living for God where it's gonna feel like it's just work that's why it's
called the work of the ministry sometimes that's how you're gonna feel
in your marriage it's just it's just I got to put in the work you know I
just gotta say I love you one more time you know I got to just try and
be that good husband one more time or wife right you got it you got to
express that passion one more time you got to find it and look you know it'll
come back the problem is is like in the Christian life and marriages you
know whatever it is people getting these low points and they just think
well that's it that's the rest of my life that's what it is this is all I
have to look forward to the rest is this low point no it's just a low
point and you know if you recognize low points for what they are you'll
actually learn to appreciate them because they makes the high points better if it
was all high points all the time that would be called the plateau right and
that would not be a high point anymore that would be the new baseline and that
would become a low point eventually right you follow me it's like life
has to have this this wave in it these highs and lows peaks and valleys
that's just life don't just throw in the towel because your your marriage
gets passionless for some season or go through some difficulty rekindle
that flame no don't don't stop reading your Bible and quit on church and quit
on God just because the Christian life you know it's turned into work you
the excite the thrill is gone the honeymoon's over that you know it'll
come back go on some mission trip you know go go do more solely go do
something for God it'll come back like I experienced that almost every
week you show up on Saturday go soul winning it's hot you got a list as long
as your arm is everything else you could be doing and you're going no one's
gonna want to listen no one's gonna want to hear it and then you go out
there and sometimes no one wants to listen no one wants to hear it well you
know but you still get excited about it the brethren are there and then you
know when people do get saved it's like why would I not want to do this it's
like when someone gets saved it's like man I just want to keep going I don't
know how many times that's happened in my life where I've gone out soul winning
just out of duty and it's and I preach the gospel somebody I'm like well
let's just keep going can we do this for another three hours and then
zeal's rekindled but you know what then you know a week or two later
it's same thing again no one wants to hear it doesn't want that why am I
doing you know it's a cycle right that's just the way life is don't quit at
the low points don't quit when it feels like you have no passion no zeal
sometimes you just have to go in there rekindle it yourself you know make
yourself passionate about it I mean good night sometimes you got to get up
and preach sermons it's like I'm not passionate about this well you need to
get passionate about it you need to get excited about the sermon every
times have you read Genesis 28 you know it's a it's a well-known story I
mean we really have to preach Genesis 28 or 29 and that's where we are we had to
really go through this story again we all know it can we just move along to
more exciting story no you know we can even get excited about Genesis 29
tonight there's there's something there to learn you know and what we got out
of it what have power have patience have passion let's go to close the word
prayer