Go Get The Bride
Introduction
Genesis 24 is the longest chapter in the Book of Genesis. We see that the Holy Spirit lingers lovingly over every detail. This is a love story of how Isaac got his bride. This truly is one of the most romantic stories in all of history. [But there is more to the story that meets the eye.]
You see, Abraham wanted to find a bride for his son Isaac. So he commissioned his servant to go back to his home that he had left many years ago, and find a bride for Isaac. The servant obeyed his master. He went and found a bride; her name was Rebekah, and he persuaded her to come back with him. Rebekah came back with the servant; she married Abraham’s son Isaac, and they lived happily ever after. {For Isaac, it was love at first sight. For Rebekah, it was love at no sight.}
A man on a plane sat down next to a beautiful young lady. She was the most gorgeous woman he had ever seen. It was love at first sight. He struck up a conversation with her, “Are you married?” She replied, “No,” Then he asked, “Are you engaged?” Again, she replied, “No.” He pressed the issue, “Are you dating anyone?” Once more, she said, “No.” Then he asked, “Why isn’t a beautiful woman like you not dating?”
She then replied, “I am looking for a man with certain qualities."
He asked, "What kind of qualities are you looking for in a man?"
She replied, "I like native American Indians. I love their skin color and high cheek bones. I also like Jewish men. Jewish men seem so brilliant and are financially successful. But I also like the good ole boys from the south, their southern drawl and the way they treat a woman. By the way, what’s your name?”
He answered, “My name is Geronimo Berstein, but my friends call me Bubba.”
If you go back to (Genesis 22) you will find Abraham willing to offer Isaac as a sacrifice, as he was commanded by the Lord. Oftentimes in the Scripture, Abraham is a type, a picture, and a portrait of God the Father. You will also learn from the Word of God that Isaac is a picture, a type, and a portrait of the Lord Jesus Christ.
The New Testament teaches us that just as Abraham was seeking a bride for his son Isaac, God the Father is seeking (and still seeking) a bride for His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.
Now, Rebekah, the one whom the Servant sought and found for Isaac, in this story, is a picture, and a type of the Church. I believe that Rebekah is a picture of everyone who has been “called out” to be a ‘bride’ for God’s Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.
But there is one person I would like for us to notice for a few moments; and that is the Servant. The Servant is the one who put this marriage together. I believe the [Servant] is a picture, a type, and a portrait of the Holy Spirit of God whom the Heavenly Father has sent into this world to (convict), to (convince), to (Compel) and to (convert) lost sinners into loving saints; who join themselves to the Lord Jesus Christ. I want us to take a closer look at this Servant and see what he does to compel and complete this marriage.
Whether you understand it or not, there is a Work of the Holy Spirit in our lives at this very moment. (1)- For some, the Work of the Holy Spirit in your life is for bringing you into a relationship with the Lord Jesus. (2)- For others, the Work of the Holy Spirit in your life is to make Christ more real to you than ever before.
Notice how this servant works on the behalf of the father Abraham and the son Isaac.
I. The Working Of The Servant
Abraham was pushing 140 years of age. Life’s sun was sinking fast on him. But he still had one piece of unfinished business to attend to before he died. He wanted to find a bride for his son Isaac. Isaac was 40 years old; he wanted a bride; and he needed a bride.
Abraham had determined, as his last and greatest love gift to Isaac was that he wanted to give him a bride. So Abraham sent his servant out to find Isaac, his son a bride.
Notice carefully {24:2-4}- “And Abraham said unto his eldest servant of his house, that ruled over all that he had, Put, I pray thee, thy hand under my thigh: [3]- And I will make thee swear by the Lord, the God of heaven, and the God of the earth, that thou shalt not take a wife unto my son of the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell: [4]- But thou shalt go unto my country, and to my kindred, and take a wife unto my son Isaac.”
A. The Servant Was Sent By The Father
We are not told who the Servant is. But I believe we can find the answer back in (Genesis 15:2- “… and the steward of my house is this Eliezer of Damascus.”) “Eliezer” means ‘God’s helper’. The Servant was commissioned by Abraham to go out and bring back a bride for his son.
Who does this remind you of? Jesus said about the Holy Spirit: {John 14:16}- “And I will pray the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter [helper], that He may abide with you for ever.”
This Servant is a wonderful picture of the Holy Spirit of God. The Holy Spirit was sent by God the Father. {John 14:26}- “But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, Whom the Father will send in My name”
It is interesting to note that you never find the Servant’s name mentioned anywhere in this chapter. This lets us know something about his responsibility. Not only was this Servant commissioned by Abraham to go and find a bride, it was the Servant’s job to call attention to the father’s son, Isaac. The servant was sent out to magnify the father’s son.
Listen carefully. The Holy Spirit never calls attention to Himself - He always calls attention to Jesus!
Eliezer was not sent to talk about himself, he was sent to talk about Isaac. And he had only one job. Eliezer wanted to make the bride FALL IN LOVE with Isaac.
I want you to get something in your heart. The Holy Spirit has been sent to do one simple thing. He has been sent by God to make His “bride” to fall in love with Jesus.
{John 15:26}- “But when the Comforter is come, Whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, He shall testify of Me.”
The Holy Spirit does not get real excited about Miracles (unless it is a person being born-again); He doesn’t get excited about feelings; He doesn’t get excited about signs & wonders. IT IS JESUS THAT EXCITES THE HOLY SPIRIT. The Holy Spirit doesn’t cause people to {first} fall in love with the Church and then Jesus. The main purpose of the Holy Spirit is to cause people to fall in love with God the Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.
B. The Servant Was To Seek Out A Bride
Notice {24:4}- “take a wife unto my son Isaac.”. There is something interesting that needs to be noted here. Abraham and his servant were talking about this “bride”; and they had already picked out this “bride” for Isaac and yet she doesn’t know anything about it.
Abraham and the Servant had already chosen the “bride” for Isaac. This means that Rebekah was chosen for Isaac (before) she ever chose Isaac. REBEKAH CHOSE ISAAC BECAUSE SHE WAS FIRST CHOSEN FOR ISAAC. Rebekah was already in the heart of Abraham. He wanted a “bride” for Isaac. So he sends his servant to where she was.
Did you know that you and I were chosen before God created us? {Ephesians 1:4}- “According as He hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love.” So this lets me know that we chose Him because He first chose us. {1 John 4:19}- “We love Him, because He first loved us.”
I want to remind you that it was Abraham that took the initiative and sent out the servant to seek out a bride for Isaac. The servant went out to do the work the father sent him to do. There was a bride that needed to be chosen, and someone was sent out to go and get the bride.
This was the Work of the Servant. Abraham sent him and he was to seek out a bride for his son. The Servant acted in accordance with the will of Abraham and with Isaac’s interests in mind.
II. The Wooing Of The Servant
Eliezer, Abraham’s servant, was sent with a great commission; he was sent on a difficult task. While on his difficult journey, he could not afford aimless wanderings. He knew his work and he knew what he was sent to do.
The servant was to do everything he could to entice a bride for Isaac; and to enlighten her about Isaac. When he arrived at his destination, he prayed for guidance. He knew that all must be done in fellowship with God in Heaven. Then he proposed a practical test. {vs.11-20}. The servant asked for a girl who would offer him water; not only for him, but for his camels as well. If she past this test, then she would be the one for Isaac.
When the girl past the test, then it was up to him to do everything he could to get her to go back with him to meet Isaac.
A. He Wooed Her With Gifts
Rebekah came along and met the conditions the servant required. The servant then rewarded her with gifts. {vs.22}. At first, Rebekah did not understand all that was going on. After the gifts were given, the Servant began to discover that she was the daughter of Bethuel and the granddaughter of Nahor, Abraham’s brother. The rest of the story followed quickly and naturally.
Then the Servant was taken to Rebekah’s home where he began to tell the story of his great task that he was sent to do. This seemed like a natural meeting, but in reality, this was a meeting that had been planned in Heaven; now it was taking place on earth.
This sounds to me like the Wooing of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit came a great distance (from Heaven to earth) with a great task in front of Him. His task is to compel a “bride” for God the Father’s Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. He is here to make much of the Son and to tell of the Heavenly Father and His wondrous ways. His task is to seek out and compel those who will become the “bride” of Christ.
There are basically 2 people who first came in contact with this Servant sent from Abraham. {There was Laban; and there was Rebekah.} (1)- Laban Is A Picture Of The Worldly Heart. Laban was impressed with the gifts that the Servant had brought. He longed to get his hands on the rich gifts. Laban was unmoved by the wonderful story the Servant told.
Laban had to listen to the whole story that the servant told. While the Servant spoke of Abraham and his goodness; as he spoke of Isaac and his longing for a “bride,” Laban was only interested in the gifts. He wasn’t interested in the giver. (Even later on in his life, once again, Laban would show his true character). In (24:50) Laban did pay lip service to God, but he did so without any real interest in the spiritual dimensions.
Keep in mind that the “gifts” were not to bribe a “bride”, they were gifts of love from Abraham to woo a “bride” for his son Isaac. The “gift” was basically to show the Wealth and the Worth of the father’s son.
Laban is a picture of a worldly heart. He only wanted the gifts. On the other hand, (2)- Rebekah Is A picture Of A Willing Heart. There was something about the story of Isaac that kindled a response in Rebekah’s heart. Even though she had never seen him - - she had come to know him solely by the word of the servant; more than likely she already felt that she knew Isaac. It was as though she had already given him her heart.
I can hear the Servant as HE BRAGS ON THE POSSESSIONS OF THE FATHER! Look in {24:34,35}- “…And the Lord hath blessed my master greatly, and he is become great: and, he hath given him flocks, and herds, and silver, and gold, and men-servants, and maidservants, and camels, and asses.” The Servant describes all the wealth of his master Abraham this way; ‘Rebekah; you ought to see my master. He has beautiful jewels; he has a great number of herds. He has land, as far as the eyes can see. He has large number of flock. He has cattle. You ought to see what everything he owns. Your eyes have not seen; your ears have not heard what my master has in store for the bride who will love his son.’
I can hear the Servant as HE BEGINS TO DESCRIBE THE POSITION OF THE SON! Notice {24:36}- “And Sarah my mater’s wife bare a son to my master when she was old: and unto him hath he given all that he hath.” Listen to the Servant as he describes to Rebekah Abraham’s only son. ‘Abraham has a son; His name is Isaac. Abraham has already ‘deeded’ over everything he has to Isaac. All the [jewels], all the [herds], all the [cattle], all the [land] belongs to his only son, Isaac. He has already given it to him.’
Listen carefully. This Servant was doing everything he could to woo Rebekah; to compel Rebekah to leave her family, and go to a foreign country and marry a perfect stranger. I believe that Eliezer was telling Rebekah that if she chooses to be Isaac’s bride, all that belonged to the father; and everything that the father had given his son, would belong to her.
Listen carefully. If Rebekah goes to meet Isaac, the only thing she has to go on is what Eliezer was telling her. The only thing Rebekah could put her faith in was what she was told by the servant. This was one perfect stranger telling a second perfect stranger that she ought to marry a third perfect stranger, whom she had never met.
The Holy Spirit is here at this very moment to make the Lord Jesus Christ real and appealing to you. The Holy Spirit will tell you about all that the Heavenly Father has; and He will tell you that all that belongs to the Father also belongs to His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. He will tell you that in order to receive all that the Heavenly Father has you must first be a member of His family. (You must be a part of His bride.)
B. He Wooed Her With Grace
Rebekah didn’t do one thing to deserve what was offered her. She was sought out; she was told all about Abraham and his son Isaac; and all she has to do is give an answer. She doesn’t have to do one thing. She is about to receive something she did not deserve, much less asked for.
There is only one Person who can convince you to come to Jesus. It is the Holy Spirit. The only One who can compel you and woo you and draw you to Jesus is the Holy Spirit. He is the only One who can cause you to fall in love with Jesus Christ.
By the way, all that you know and all that you desire of Jesus is based on the Word from the Holy Spirit, and the Wooing of the Holy Spirit. But that is all you need. The Holy Spirit comes to you with GIFTS. That GIFT is Eternal Life. The Holy Spirit comes to extent GRACE to you and me. You can’t buy it, it is free; even though you don’t deserve it. (1)- The Working of the Servant! . . .
III. The Winning Of The Servant
I can imagine as Eliezer presented the simple facts of the case to Rebekah. He tells her the story of Abraham and his son Isaac. He invites her to give herself to the unseen man dwelling afar off with his father. But now the rest is up to her. The Servant had come along way to win her. Now Rebekah has to make a decision. The servant will not force her to go.
No doubt Rebekah could have invented a hundred reasons and excuses why she should say ‘no’ to the invitation. I can hear her now; ‘How do I know your story is true? I don’t want to give up my present life-style. I am quite happy where I am.’ But there are no excuses. She instantly gave in and gave her heart to the unseen Isaac.
Did you know that Rebekah was encouraged by Laban to stay an extra 10 days? {Look in vs.54-57} But the Servant told him “Hinder me not.” She could have stayed if she wanted to. She had a reasonable excuse to stay.
I would like to remind you that Satan will do everything he can to try and stop you from receiving Jesus Christ. He will use family; friends; enemies …
But notice what she said in {24:58}- “And they called Rebekah, and said unto her, Wilt thou go with this man? And she said, I WILL GO.”
There was a long journey ahead of them. Rebekah didn’t know the way to Abraham’s house. She needed someone to go with her and take her to her new home.
A. There Was One Way To The Father’s House
Look down in {24:61}- “And Rebekah arose, and her damsels, and they rode upon the camels, and followed the man: and the servant took Rebekah, and went his way.”
Rebekah was totally dependant upon the Servant. She didn’t know how to find Isaac. She had no idea where Isaac was. (1)- Rebekah Needed A Guide. She needed someone to lead her along the way.
I don’t think that we need to be reminded that every person in this building needs the Holy Spirit; not only to tell us about God’s Son, the Lord Jesus Christ - but we need a (GUIDE) to lead us to Him. {John 16:13}- “Howbeit when He, the Spirit of truth is come, HE WILL GUIDE you unto all truth”
Rebekah Needed A Guard. She had a dangerous trip ahead of her. She faced over 400 miles of wasteland; desert; robbers; thieves; criminals; murderers. She could not survive the trip alone. She would have been taken captive or possibly killed. Rebekah needed some one who could GUIDE her and GUARD her and even GUARENTEE her that she should would make it from one end of that desert to the other.
When God the Father sent God the Holy Spirit to us to tell us about His dear Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit didn’t leave us once we accepted what He told us. The Holy Spirit is our GUIDE, GUARD and GUARENTEE that we are going to make it to Heaven.
I will give you one good reason why I know I am going to Heaven -- THE HOLY SPIRIT OF GOD LIVES IN MY HEART. The Holy Spirit is God’s Guarantee, God’s down payment. We are guaranteed that we are going to make it to Heaven.
Paul tells us in {Ephesians 1:13,14}- “In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also, after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise, [14]- Which is the earnest {guarantee; down payment} of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.”
Just as the Servant did not fail to bring back the “bride” to Isaac, the Holy Spirit will not fail to bring back the “bride” to Jesus Christ.
B. There Was One Waiting At The Father’s House
Look carefully in {24:63-67}. Isaac had been waiting for a bride for a while. He had already been to Mt. Moriah, and his work was done. The calling of the “bride” was the work of another. Isaac’s task was simply to wait at the father’s house in the father’s presence until the appointed time when he could go forth to meet his bride.
I can see Isaac as he is counting the days. The weeks have now turned to days. He knows that it could be any day. He would walk out into the fields to look out, thinking they would come that very day. All Isaac wanted was to {have} a bride; to {hold} a bride. All he wanted was to (live) with her and (love) her forever and ever. {The moment that the servant left to find him a bride, he had been getting the house ready; preparing a place for her to live.}
Then one day Isaac sees the dust being kicked up in the background. He begins to watch. He sees a line of camels heading his way. His heart begins to race with excitement and joy. The Servant stops a little ways off. Eliezer gets off his camel. He comes up to Isaac. He tells Isaac the most exciting story of how he (worked) for her; how he (wooed) her; how he (won) her. Now, he was ready to (WED) this girl to him. Then, Eliezer turns to the Father’s house and makes his announcement:
HERE COMES THE BRIDE!!
Rebekah gets off that camel. She puts that veil over her face. Isaac comes to meet her half way. It is love at first sight. They (MEET); they (MARRY); and they (MATE). They live happily ever after.
What a picture of the Wedding in Heaven. You think you love Jesus now. Just wait to the Marriage. There will be a shout - the Lord will meet His children in the sky. It will be love at first sight. And we will spend all of eternity with Him. All because of the COMPELING WORK of the Holy Spirit. You would never know the Lord Jesus Christ if it had not been for the Holy Spirit.
Rebekah had to come to Isaac before Isaac would come to Rebekah. Even though Abraham chose Rebekah for Isaac; even though the Servant told her of the Wonder, the Wealth of Isaac - Rebekah still had to choose Isaac for herself. If she was going to enjoy the (wedded life), she first had to leave her {worldly life} behind. REBEKAH HAD TO MARRY ISAAC ON HIS TERMS.
Conclusion
EVERY PERSON WILL HAVE TO MAKE A DECISION – AND THE DECISION YOU WILL MAKE WILL DETERMINE YOUR DESTINY.
An aged old Saint was asked to describe Salvation. He replied; ‘Something for nothing.’ Another aged old saint, who had weathered many storms for many years, said; ‘Yes; It is even better than that. IT’S EVERTHING FOR NOTHING.’
The Holy Spirit Is Here At This Moment To Get The Bride Ready For The Lord Jesus Christ!