Genesis 49:28
“All these are the twelve tribes of Israel: and this is it that their father spake unto them, and blessed them; every one according to his blessing he blessed them.”
The life of Jacob is one that started in much turmoil but ended in serenity. Between the time when he exercised faith and the time of peace, there were many mistakes and battles that he fought. When he bought the birthright, that was an exercise of faith. He believed God’s promise that his father told him about, and that was why he exercised the faith to purchase the birthright. That exercise of faith was not realized immediately, and at many times that exercise of faith may have seemed futile. Yet, God always honors faith. In spite of the many mistakes he made in his life, his act of faith was finally realized as his life ended in blessings and peace.
Faith’s blessings are oftentimes deferred. The life of Jacob truly teaches the Christian that faith will always be honored if we never give up on it. As I look at Jacob’s faith, I see there are several lessons that we can learn that will be useful in our daily life.
First, don’t give up on your exercised faith. Many times we can give up on faith because we see no fruit coming from it. We give money in the offering and see no blessings coming from giving. We’ve stepped out by faith and don’t see the immediate rewards of faith and become discouraged. Never let doubt cause you to give up on your faith. Just because you have not seen an immediate reward for your faith does not mean that your faith will not be rewarded. Faith will be rewarded if you keep believing in it. It may not be rewarded in your timing, but it will be rewarded in God’s timing.
Second, between the step of faith and its reward, you will endure much hardness. God never said that the journey of faith would be easy. In fact, God reveals the opposite in 2 Timothy 2:3 when He says, “Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.” Jacob faced battles, heartache and death along the way, but his faith was rewarded. You will also see battles, heartaches, setbacks and death along the way, but you must never give up on your faith and belief that God will reward you for your act of faith.
Third, don’t allow your missteps in life to keep you from pursuing your act of faith. The one thing about Jacob that I love is that he continued to pursue his faith even after he made tragic mistakes. Christian, you are going to make mistakes in your life, but that does not mean that God won’t reward your faith. So, you messed up. Get up, and continue from where you are until the reward of faith is realized. God knew when you stepped out by faith that you would make mistakes, but He still challenged you to take that step of faith for He has a great reward for you if you will continue to pursue it.
Jacob’s life ended in blessing and tranquility. When you see him blessing his sons, you see the peace and blessings he wanted when he purchased the birthright. Friend, don’t let situations of your life keep you from pursuing your step of faith. Somewhere in the past you have taken a step of faith. Let me encourage you to continue pursuing it. It doesn’t matter what you have done, if you will continue to follow that step of faith then God’s rewards will come in His timeline.