The Sneaky Little Trickster

Again, some context for these stories:

I absolutely love the Jesus Storybook Bible. I have read it to my kids and have used it countless times in a class that I teach with Cru. I love its focus and its style and its simplicity and at the same time its depth.  

But the one thing I don't love about it is that there isn't enough of it.

So, I have begun writing stories that Sally Lloyd-Jones doesn't cover in the JSB for my 7 year old son. Because of how much my kids have loved the JSB, I have attempted to capture the tone and focus and style of Sally's writing (including some of her great phrases). Not sure if I have succeeded or not, but they have provided rich times of reading when I tuck my son in bed at night.

I wanted to begin to occasionally share these in case you wanted to share them with your kids (or enjoy them for yourself).


The Sneaky Little Trickster - Jacob and Esau
Genesis 27:1-49
Abraham had been given the special promise by God, “I will especially bless you and rescue the world through you.”  And then Abraham had a boy named Isaac.  And God made the same promise to him.  And then Isaac had twins - Esau and Jacob.

Now in those days, the son that was born first got all of the special treatment.  They were the favorite.  They got a bigger allowance.  They got better toys.  And they would be the ones that got their parent’s inheritance (inheritance is just a big word for getting all of your parent’s stuff and money after they die).  
Even though Esau and Jacob were twins and born on the same day, Esau was born a few minutes before Jacob.  So, he was the one who got all of the special treatment.  
Well, how would you feel if you were Jacob and your brother got all of the special treatment?  That’s exactly how he felt.  He was jealous and angry and sad and then even more jealous and angry and sad.  
Now, ever since they were born, Jacob had been trying to become the favorite. He would do anything to just get that special treatment - even if that meant lying and stealing and cheating to get it (as we will soon see).

Sometime later, Jacob and Esau's dad, Isaac, was just about to die. Now back then, before a father died, he would have a special ceremony for his very special son. Everything was getting prepared for Isaac to pass the special blessing on to Esau.  
So, when the ceremony was just about to start, Jacob came up with a brilliantly awful idea and a brilliantly awful costume (even though it wasn't Halloween). And guess who he dressed up as?  Esau.

Now Isaac was really, really old and couldn't hardly see anymore. So, Isaac didn't have any idea that Jacob had come to the ceremony dressed up like Esau and was tricking him.  Jacob actually got away with it and tricked his dad into giving him all of the special blessings that Esau was supposed to get. It was like Esau won the championship and Jacob stole his first place trophy.

And when Esau and Isaac found out what happened, they were furious. You could have heard Esau screaming for miles. "That sneaky little trickster", he yelled. "He robbed me of everything that was mine."  
Well, Jacob got out of there as fast as he could - running from his dad. Running from Esau. And even running from God.

But even though he could trick his dad because he couldn't see very well, God could see and saw every one of Jacob's tricks.

And you wouldn't believe what God did to Jacob.  He did the exact opposite of what you’d think he would do.  He chose to bless him instead of punish him.  Just like the promise he gave to Isaac and to Abraham, he promised to especially bless Jacob and rescue the world through him.  And you know what Jacob had to do to get it - he definitely didn’t have to lie and steal and cheat to get the blessing.  And he didn’t even have to act like an especially good son to get the blessing.  He simply had to do nothing.  God loved him simply because he loved him.  Jacob just needed to receive it.

Well, just like God promised, one of Jacob’s great, great, great, grandchildren would be the rescuer of the world - and instead of punishing, he chose to bless...especially blessing the sneaky little tricksters like Jacob...and like you and me.  

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Psalm 20 - Lord, Save the King

Image
  Lord, with some sanctified imagination, I can imagine Peter, James, and John praying this psalm in the Garden of Gethsemane on the night of your betrayal. They knew the threats against you, and as they were fighting sleep, I can hear them praying for your protection (v. 1). They likely would have been praying for the Father to send help and to keep in mind how you have lived a fully devoted life (v. 2-3). Lord, maybe after you had to wake them up, they got back to this psalm and continued praying for you to receive your heart's desire and that God would grant victory to you and them (v. 4-5). And then, after being awakened by you again, they continue with an assurance that God will truly save his anointed. Others may trust in chariots, but if you had taught them anything, it was to trust in the Lord. And so, they confidently affirmed that they (and you) would rise in triumph (v. 6-8). And as they concluded this prayer with, "O lord, save the king" (v. 9), they dozed off
Read more

Psalm 24 - Every Six Steps

Image
God, we don’t know for sure the occasion for this psalm, but it certainly could have been when David brought the Ark of the Covenant into Jerusalem in 2 Samuel 6. During that scene in 2 Samuel 6, the narrative is colored by tragedy as the Ark of God makes its way to Jerusalem. The tragedy is when the Ark begins to topple when the ox stumbles, and Uzzah reaches out his hand, touching the Ark to steady it. And, in touching the Ark, he immediately dies. Three months later, determined to get the Ark to Jerusalem, David tries again. But, knowing that he was moving You, the creator God, and that no unclean hands could touch the Ark (as in Uzzah’s case), and because only those with pure hearts could be in Your presence, they would only take six steps at a time and then stop to sacrifice a bull and a fattened calf (2 Samuel 6:13). God, every six steps a sacrifice was required to stay clean and pure! To be honest, that sounds just about right for my heart. The only reason I might think t
Read more

Psalm 13 - “How long?”

Image
                                                                                                 Orbon Alija/E+/Getty Images How long? God, unlike irritated parents on a road trip after hours of relentless “How much longer” from the back seat, you seem to invite that question. Actually, it is so much more than a question, it’s a heart’s cry. Fifteen times in the Psalter, this question is asked of you. And four of those times are in this psalm alone. For David, it’s not just that the road trip is taking so long, but he’s literally wondering if dad even knows where he’s going. And like a four-year-old who can’t take it anymore, he’s wondering if he’ll even survive this trip. God, if I were honest, I don’t allow my heart to act like a four-year-old before you. So instead, I filter my prayers through a theology that tells me that God is sovereign, his timing is perfect; he will never leave or forsake me; he knows all, so of course, he will never forget me; he has a wonderful plan fo
Read more