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Road to Rehoboth IV

 ·   ·  ☕ 8 min read  ·  ✍️ Odunayo Rotimi

Snapshot

Key Text: Genesis 26:15-21.
Key Character: Isaac.
Rebekah: Isaac’s wife, not sister.
Abraham: Isaac’s dad; progenitor of the Jewish race.
Gerar: Supposed capital city of the Philistines.
Abimelech: Title of the ruling Philistine Lord.
👀: See here for part 1, here for part 2, and here for part 3.

Rehoboth

There are different stations in the walk of a man with His God. Abraham, for example, travelled from Ur of the Chaldeans through Haran Egypt, Philistine to Canaan. Different landscapes had different connotations, demands and challenges. Similarly, Isaac traversed different terrains. God interrupted him in an attempted economic relocation to Egypt like Abraham, his father. In concession, he sojourned at Gerah. Now Gerah was a place of many conflicts mixed with blessings. But Rehoboth was a blessed roomy place – a delight to one who has painfully sought rest from conflict attendant to obeying God.

The correlation between Abraham’s and Isaac’s sojourn holds for us a mine of truth, into which we may not explore in vain, should we endeavour to do so. Therefore, in this series, we shall consider the roughness and the smoothness the route leading to the Rehoboth poses.

In this final episode of this series, we also consider the caveat to bear in mind whilst dwelling in Rehoboth. God bless you reachly.

Restoration (Genesis 26:22)

“Hope deferred makes the heart sick,” said that realistic expression in Proverbs 13:12, “But desire fulfilled is a tree of life.” The Chapter opens with famine, followed by a forbiddance to progress to Egypt in pastures green. Due obedience met with rejection and stiff resistance, livestock-, irrigation-, and life-sustaining wells were stumped. Isaac was disgracefully ushered out of the Philistine Capital, Gerar, like a traitor. From living in kingly quarters in Gerar, He descended to living in the abandoned valley of Gerar. Not even the epileptic Philistines lived there. While proceeding to the suburb, Isaac’s servants were waylaid in two other towns. Here if the Philistines needed water, they so needed to travel. Yet, the mileage did not discourage them from this journey because of sheer envy.

All these put together if Isaac had no personal relationship with God and a vivid example of hIs father’s walk with God, should have made him falter. I would have been tempted to doubt and despair. Many like me would have really doubted God’s voice, saying, “Did I really hear God say…? or it might just have been a mere dream! Maybe I fabricated it.” What an example of faith Isaac was. He knew Abraham to have known God to be He who calls things that be not as though they were. He anchored His trust on that. And this defied the blast of persecution and pressure with strength divine.

Having passed through a challenging time. How long? Years, Decades? We d not know. For the first time, after a series of struggles and displacement, He got to a land of “No opposition.” I perceive the more wells Isaac dug and were filled, the farther away he moved from the Philistines even while in their territory. Perhaps he was progressing farther and farther to a place beyond their reasonable or coverable reach or places where they would have tagged wasteland. If true. The farther away from them Isaac journeyed, the closer He came to the land of abundance. Little wonder, on reaching Rehoboth, a land devoid of opposition, He progressed to Beersheba since He was out of reach of these cruel Philistines.

Rehoboth to Isaac, was a tree of life. “Because he said, ‘For now the Lord has made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land.’” Although he had once “reaped in the same year a hundred folds,” he knew there was more to God’s promise. And the realization of Rehoboth – the roomy space, devoid of quarrelling – was an assurance that God was at work. It was fruitfulness as a reward for destitution. It was blessings over scarcity. It was a life of peace of dispute. It is a place of freedom of expansion as the need arose.

Rehoboth was a place where those who envied him before and displaced him now beg to live at his mercy. It is a place where naturally his fame went abroad, even faster than when He was a next-door neighbour to Abimelech. It is a place where those who monitored Him to His woe will be surprised at the wonder God attained through him. Those who anticipated evil will jaw-drop to see what God can do. It is a place where kings saw Isaac’s light shining in darkness as with plenty in famine and safety in trouble. And they arise and come “to the brightness of” his “rising.”

The tides turned at Rehoboth, and any direction upwards that Isaac went was blessed. The gentile king and his cabinet had to come to kiss this prince lest he mobilizes his aggrieved servant to take possession of the land of Philistine. They were in danger now! There is ample space for blessing, expansion and training for war now. The best political decision Abimelech could come to was to mobilize his famished army to beg for safety.

I pray soon that all your years that has been eaten up by cankerworm be restored in Jesus name. Then the joy that ousts pain can be known and enjoyed, as did Isaac.

Relentlessness in Rehoboth (Genesis 26:26-30)

Nevertheless, a treaty with our enemy is Satan and his territory, which we progress against, is our sworn enemy. As such, every activity of his – subtle or severe – is a fighting strategy. For example, see how Abimelech and his entourage lied that they have been good to Isaac (Genesis 26:29). So satan comes because, in the last days, Christ has granted him the liberty to use deception as a weapon for his warfare (Matthew 24:24).

Satan knows humanity tend to sweat less in safety. In a time of opposition, almost all Christians are spiritually awakened in times of resistance; because they solely depend on God to fight their battles. Sadly, convenience or plenty poses more danger to a Christian than times of comfort. In stressful times, Satan appeals less to us with subtlety. It is fire-for-fire. But in the restoration land, Satan, like Abimelech, often subtly canvases for an unequal-yoking in the name of a peace treaty. He doesn’t look for ways to assault light with darkness. Instead, he strives to merge light with darkness through deceit, through which He could totally quench the light.

We are never told to consider every appeal for peace and unity. If anything, we were bid not to be ignorant of the explosive and implosive devices of the wicked one. We are further told to cast down every imagination that exalts itself against the knowledge of Christ. Every attempt of Satan at us, every proposal of his, falls into this category. In the time of fruitfulness, hypocrites like Annanias and Saphira made their way into the flock of the Lord’s sheep. Simon, the sorcerer, offered cash for power when the gospel had found its home in Samaria. Once enriched materially, the Israelites quickly slipped into idolatry. Almost after, not in battle, Samson found himself gravitating towards sexual immorality or defiance to his Nazarene vows. The story could have been different if David had been more careful in peace than in trouble. Solomon ended shamefully in idolatry because David had fought all the wars he should have fought before he ascended to power.

Every approach for a peace pact must be tested. It must be proved by the fire of prayer and the suffocation of time. Rehoboth is a place of attraction and roomy space and will attract people with different motives. One may be tempted to make room for all without necessarily contacting the one who made room for one in Rehoboth. Therefore, caution needs to be taken. Hard stands may be of necessity. Raising the fences of Rehoboth as high as Jerusalem’s may be worth a standard.

Likewise, we should know that diplomacy is disastrous and is more deceitful in peace than outright confrontation. We are only occupants of a recovered territory. We are to rule, in this land, over our coming king’s enemy, even now that we have been empowered until He returns. The possessor – Satan – whom we ousted will not relent. Hence, we were bid by Paul not to undress after any fight. We are bid to do all to stand – fully armed – after every victory. So, brother, seek not yet repose, Cast thy dreams of ease away; thou art in the midst of foes: watch and pray…1

Now that we have arisen to shine, whichever king must come to the brightness of our rising must come adhering to the terms and conditions of He whose glory, like light, has arisen upon us.

References


  1. Charlotte Elliott (1836): Christian, seek not yet repose. ↩︎

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Odunayo Rotimi
WRITTEN BY
Odunayo Rotimi