7 February 2010
Psalm 93, 96; Gen. 24:50-67; 2 Tim. 2:14-21; Mark 10:13-22

We begin to see Laban’s modus operandi here, trying to get the servant to allow Rebekah to stay perhaps ten days longer with them, but the servant won’t hear of it. Abraham has provided lavishly for his new daughter-in-law and her family. Their blessing of Rebekah partially echoes the blessing of God on Abraham, but they could hardly have imagined how great her offspring would be. It is also difficult to imagine this demure and compliant young woman becoming the woman we will later see.

How do we receive the kingdom of God “as a little child.” I think it has to do with our attitude and Rebekah’s attitude towards going with the servant is a good example. She didn’t know anything at all about the servant or Isaac, her future husband, yet she knew that the servant revealed the master to her in a way that made her decision to go with him quite simple. His testimony concerning the goodness of the master and his story about answered prayer convinced her to take the step of faith. Here, we also see another who comes seeking eternal life but isn’t willing to give up what he has in order to receive that which he cannot see with his eyes. Faith is, at some level, childlike in its innocence and trust or it isn’t faith at all.

We are called to cling to truth and not idle talk. There is much speculative theology in our world and often that becomes the thing that divides people and leads them astray. There are, however, simple, settled truths such as those things we confess in our creeds. The creeds are an important part of our worship as they remind us that we stand in line with the early church as well as the church throughout history. Sometimes we need to be reminded that our faith has particular content that was established long ago and yet we also need to remember that these are statements of faith not “fact” in the way that the world establishes fact. Saying that God created it all, that Jesus was born of a virgin, that his death was for our sins, that he was resurrected on the third day, that we believe in the Holy Spirit, and such, are indeed statements of belief that the world doesn’t validate, they are truths by which we live but which the outside world doesn’t affirm as true.

Oh sing to the LORD a new song;
sing to the LORD, all the earth!
Sing to the LORD, bless his name;
tell of his salvation from day to day.
Worship the LORD in the splendor of holiness;
tremble before him, all the earth!