May I please Almighty God to
bless us together this morning as we meditate in his word. Let
us turn to the book of Genesis chapter 24 and we'll read verse
34. The book of Genesis chapter 24
and reading verse 34. And he said, I am Abraham's servant. This is a very short statement
by this man who was the senior servant of Abraham. And as we
read together in this chapter, we see how God wonderfully directed
Abraham with regard to his servant and what he was to do and how
he followed that direction of Abraham and how God graciously
appeared for him and indeed heard his prayer and answered his prayer
in a wonderful way. And I'm sure that God in his
infinite love and mercy has provided such an account in the Word of
God to encourage us today, because we know very surely that God
is the great God who does not change and God is a God who still
today hears and answers prayer and as Abraham's servant clearly
heard God's or saw rather God's answer to his prayer and how
everything worked out in a wonderful way may we be encouraged in our
lives to believe that we come before the same great almighty
God. This man said I am Abraham's
servant and in essence all God's people are the servants of almighty
God. We all have a place to play in
this world. If the Lord has called us out
of that state of darkness into the marvellous light, we are
therefore no longer our own. We are no longer those who can
just rely on our own abilities and plan our own life. No, we
are bought with a price. And that price is none other
than the price of our redemption, which is the shed blood of the
Saviour. And so, may we have a realisation
of our condition before our Holy God. It's so easy to just carry
on in our little lives. indeed form our own plans, have
our own ideas, and yet you see not be concerned about doing
the will and purpose of Almighty God. Now in this instance Abraham's
servant was an obedient servant, but yet he didn't just go with,
we might term blind faith, That means faith that was not concerned
to hear and to do God's will. It was a faith which God had
given him so that he was able to pray unto God. And it is so relevant to realize
that here was this man. He knew the journey he had to
take. He knew the place that Abraham had directed him to and
it was to Mesopotamia under the city of Nahor and so he journeyed
to that place and he came to the outside of that city and
came to the well and in the evening time the time that women go out
to water and what was the first thing that he did? be prayed
unto God. How relevant it is for us today
in our lives and all of us, new children, young people, middle-aged
and old people, to come in our lives and constantly to be found
praying to God for guidance, for direction, for blessing,
and especially perhaps as we are on the first Lord's Day of
this year with the unknown of it before us, to be able to come
and to commit our way unto the Lord. Praying that the Lord will
go before us, the Lord will appear for us, the Lord will direct
us. Now, this servant of Abraham,
he was blessed with faith in God. And what a wonderful thing
it is if we are blessed with faith in God and we have his
prayer. It wasn't long. It wasn't wordy. It didn't have
a lot of padding. It was very direct. Oh Lord,
God of my master Abraham, I pray thee, send me good speed this
day and show kindness unto my master Abraham. Behold, I stand
here by the well of water, and the daughters of the men of the
city come out to draw water, and let it come to pass. For
the damsel to whom I shall say, Let down thy pitcher, I pray
thee, that I may drink, and she shall say, Drink, and I will
give thy camels rather drink also. Let the same be she. that thou hast appointed for
thy servant Isaac, and thereby shall I know that thou hast showed
kindness unto my master." Well, I'm sure we can agree that was
a very direct and very concise and very specific prayer. But
it was prayed for the honour and glory of God. And it was
prayed that the Lord would hear and answer this man's prayer. And we're told then in a very
wonderful way, it came to pass, it came to pass. Be assured of
this, the Lord does hear and answer our prayer, not always
in the way that we would like, in the way that we would want,
but nonetheless he does answer. and just let us be clear that
sometimes you and I pray for things which are not in accordance
with the divine will and purpose of God and on such occasions
the Lord answers but he doesn't say yes he says no and we should
not be disappointed if the Lord does say no because if we have
sought his blessing and his guidance we should acknowledge it is the
Lord Let him do what seemeth him good. Well, on this occasion,
in a very remarkable way, we're told it came to pass before he
had done speaking that, behold, Rebecca came out. Before he done
speaking, you see, the Lord knew what Abraham's servant was going
to pray. He knew no doubt how Abraham
had prayed. therefore he knew what he would
do. Isn't that good to realize in
our lives God knows what he will do in your life and in my life. We're not walking into the unknown. It's unknown to us. It's not
unknown to God. The Lord knows. He knows the
way that we take in every detail. And what a blessing it is if
that pathway leads us, in no uncertain terms, to the Saviour,
the Lord Jesus Christ, and to be directed in our little lives. And so we see that Rebecca came
out and Rebecca was directed by God. She wouldn't have been
aware of that. but she was directed to do those
things that Abraham's servant had prayed for. And so Abraham's
servant stood and watched. So that was a great blessing
because he was a concern to know that this would be a God or whether
it was not he was concerned, therefore, that it might be so. And we're told that when this
occurred, that the servant ran to meet her and said, let me,
I pray thee, drink a little water of thy pitcher. And she said,
drink, my Lord. And she hasted and let down her
pitcher upon her hand and gave him to drink and also then she
said she would draw water for the camels and she hasted and
emptied her pitcher into the trough and ran again and to draw
water and drew for all the camels and therefore we see here Abraham's
servant the wisdom given to him And we're told the man wondered
at her and held his peace. Yes, he just stood and watched
whether the Lord had made his journey prosperous or not. Yes, it was a trial of faith. We read it. We know the answer. We know how wonderful it was.
But here was a man having his faith tested. as you and I will
have in our lives. We may ask for certain things
and we have to wait and we have to watch for answers to those
prayers. So that's what occurred here. And then, of course, he asked
her the question, asked whose daughter she was and whether
there was room in her house for and food for the camels. And the woman said, we have both
straw and provender, enough and room to lodge in. And then we see the result of
that statement. We see the result of what had
occurred to the prayer which Abraham's servant had put up. This is what happened. And the
man bowed down his head and worshipped the Lord. What a wonderful testimony
that is. What good instruction that is
for us as we go forth into the unknown of this year. So Lord hears and answers our
prayer. The first thing we do, the first
thing we do is to bow down before God and worship the Lord. It's a wonderful and glorious
testimony and it's there for our instruction. powerful perhaps
we seem to forget we pass over these things but here it is recorded
and what does he say it seemed he spoke in his heart these words
blessed be the Lord God my master Abraham who has not left destitute
my master of his mercy and his truth I being in the way The
Lord led me to the house of my master's brethren. The Lord graciously
directed him." It's an amazing account, isn't it, to think of
this. How is this man coming to an unknown place, probably
never been to before, and here was God going before him. And then the Lord appearing for
him in a most remarkable way. Now, we should recognize today,
many years afterwards, God has not changed. And what a mercy
if we have the evidence in our lives of God hearing and answering
our prayers. And so this woman, she ran and
she told her mother's house and Laban her brother and out he
ran came and found Abraham's servant and spoke those beautiful
words to him and said come in thou blessed of the lord wherefore
standest thou without and so we see that Abraham's servant
went went in And of course, he fed the camels and they washed
their feet. And then there was food put before
them to eat. And this is the very relevant
part here, because what happened? He said, I will not eat until
I've told my errand. And he said, speak on. What was he doing? He was putting
first things first. Isn't it good to have a wonderful
example for us today, to put in our life first things first. And what did he say? He didn't
know, of course, who he was. He hadn't told them who he was.
He hadn't told Rebecca who he was. But now he does. He speaks very simply and very
plainly and he says, I am Abraham's servant. I am Abraham's servant. And then he gives a very accurate
account of everything that had happened. Yes, what a God-glorifying
account it was. What a wonderful account to be
able to trace out and see how the Lord appeared for him and
how the Lord had indeed answered his prayers and done precisely
what he desired. And he tells them, it's good,
you know, to tell what God had done. And he comes down and he
tells them what he'd done. He said, I bowed my head. worship the Lord and bless the
Lord God and my master Abraham which had led me in the right
way to take my master's brother's daughter unto his son and then
he asks he says and now deal kindly and truly with my master
tell me and if not tell me that I may turn to the right hand
or to the left And the answer from Laban was very simple. The thing proceedeth from the
Lord. You cannot speak unto thee bad
or good. Isn't it a wonderful thing when
there is the clear evidence that things proceed from the Lord. And I believe it is evident today
when things proceed from the Lord. when there have been those
evidences, those testimonies of God's leading, those testimonies
of God's answer to prayer, those blessings, those favours, to
be able to testify and to hear and to have the acknowledgement
that this thing proceedeth from the Lord. And surely, As you
and I venture forward into the unknown of this year, we want
to know that the things which occur proceed from the Lord. The Lord graciously comes and
blesses us and that proceed from our own imagination and that
proceed from our own ideas. They indeed come and they proceed
from Almighty God. What a wonderful thing it is.
And you know, when you think of this, you think of this account,
it should be a big encouragement to you young people in a day
and age in which we live. Because in the natural order
of events, it is good that we seek after a husband or a wife,
and that we pray to God for these things. and we sing to God that
he will appear for us. Now you see the example of testimony
is here that Abraham's servant, he didn't ask for any special
person, anybody that would be you know wonderful to look at
or Anybody would have a wonderful knowledge or wonderful idea of
things. No, he only wanted the Lord God
to provide. Provide a wife for his master's
son Isaac. That was his concern and when
she came he didn't question where this was the right one or the
wrong one. He had a very clear leading and direction from God that this was the right
one. Yes, what a mercy then for you
young people today to be able to come and commit your way to
the Lord that he will indeed provide for you a husband, he
will indeed provide for you a wife. Remember nothing is too hard for the Lord. The things which
are impossible with man are possible with God. Well may the Lord God
give you faith in these things, faith to trust, faith to believe. And indeed there was another
testing time really before Abraham's sermon and that was when he desired
that Rebecca might come with him. You see, the family wanted
her to stay with them for another 10 days and it wasn't an unreasonable
request, was it? It was a very sensible request.
But you see, Abraham's servant didn't want to be distracted
from that which God had prospered him so far. And he comes and
speaks these words And he says, hinder me not. Didn't want to
be stopped. So they said, they called for
Rebecca. And they asked her that great
question, will thou go with this man? And she said, I will go. Well, it's a glorious account,
isn't it? It's a wonderful account to encourage
us in our lives to believe that here was God's choice of this
woman, Rebecca, to be Isaac's wife. And we know, of course,
that it turned out well. We know it was in accordance
with God's will. And let me say clearly this,
God's choice is always the best. God doesn't make any mistakes
with his choice. You and I may make mistakes with
our choice, but God never does. And so we have a very wonderful
account here before us. And let us not forget the pattern,
the prayer, the thanksgiving, the acknowledgement, the blessing,
they all emanated from Almighty God. Yes, and we might say, firstly,
Abraham's servant obeyed his master. He didn't say, well,
I think this is too difficult a task, I'm not going. He obeyed
his master and off he went. And then we see, secondly, we
might say God gave him living faith to pray to God. He didn't come there and wonder,
I think, well, I wonder who's going to turn up and who should
I select? No, he prayed to God. And let's
not forget that then, to come in our lives with faith, but
to pray, but to pray and not to lay down conditions as to
what the person might be like. No, it was just a condition that
she might follow a pattern so that he might know that this
was the one. And thirdly, God answered. You see, if you and I have prayed,
if you and I have sought for God's direction, then we want
to be able to observe God's answer in these things. So God did hear,
and God did answer, and then there was the acknowledgement
in his answer. Abraham's servant had a good
reception. He might have been very fearful, We perhaps sometimes
are very fearful of what the reception might be. No, he had
a good reception. So fourthly, we see God therefore
provided the way and gave Abraham's servant a good reception. And what had he done? What had
Abraham done? Well, he put first things first. Yes, he hadn't brought his own
views, his own considerations. Yes, he put first things first. He didn't put his meal first,
didn't put his natural food first. No, he wanted God to clearly
be seen. Therefore, he wanted to tell
his story, tell his account. Isn't it good when you and I
are moved by the Spirit of God to tell what God has done God
has directed us in as being more important than anything else. Yes, he'd gone there and he fed
the camels and they washed their feet and now he told his account
and God was in that account and God gave them a willing spirit
and a willingness to recognize it was emanating from Almighty
God. God makes the mountains flow
down. God appears. And then he didn't
want to be hindered. No, he didn't want to be stopped.
Then we see Rebecca's willingness to follow. Well, it's a wonderful
account, but you know we cannot leave the account there without
bringing it to our personal lives and our personal spiritual life.
And we have before us in the Word of God a most wonderful
example, a greater example than Abraham's servant. And of course
our greatest and most glorious example is none other than the
Savior the Lord Jesus Christ. He had a wonderful commission
set before him by his Father, a wonderful commission to come
into sinful world, a wonderful commission to die that sin atoning
death for his people. My friends, how willing was Jesus
to die, that we fellow sinners might live. What a wonderful
example we have. And oh, may we think today and
indeed think throughout the year of the wonderful example of the
Lord Jesus Christ, who pleased not himself. No, he pleased his
father. and what he had to endure and
what he had to suffer to save our souls from hell. We who are sinful wretches, we
who deserve eternal punishment, we who deserve eternal separation
from God, to think that this great and glorious Son of God
did his Father's will came and gave his life upon that cross
at Calvary so many years ago. And that death is still powerful
today. That death was given as a sacrifice,
an acceptable sacrifice to his father and to our father. My friends, it was an acceptable
sacrifice on our behalf. Oh, can we not praise God for
that? And I hope today, as you and
I come before God with all our needs, we're able to come and
to pray unto Him, as a priority, to pray to Him that He will appear,
that He will deliver us, that He will direct us to view yon
lovely man, the great and glorious saviour, to realise that he is
our friend. We go forth into this year, we're
not alone, we're not alone, but Jesus goes with us and he goes
before us. Yes, the path has been walked
before us. The Lord Jesus, in his grace
and glorious path, has gone before. He has fought the great battle
of life on our behalf. He's conquered the great enemy
of our souls. Oh, my friends, what an enemy
we have in the devil, who would always endeavour to turn us away
from the things of God, would ever endeavour to tempt us to
believe that we do not have a God who hears and answers prayer. But may we indeed be blessed
with simple faith like Abraham's servant was. Yes, he was. I am
Abraham's servant. It was a very simple statement. But it was a very true statement. Let us not think we're anybody
other than a servant to be able to say, yes, by the grace of
God, I am the Lord's servant in our lives, whatever that may
be. And God knows what he has in store for each one of us in
the year ahead, in the years ahead, perhaps. But may we each
be concerned. to be those who are the servant
of the Most High God. That our concern is to honor
and glorify Him who has done so much, has graciously and gloriously
died on our behalf. He's bore the punishment instead. He's taken away all our sins.
But you know, in order to do that, he had to die. He had to shed his blood. There
was no less was required of the Son of God than to sacrifice
himself. Well, may we go on our way today,
rejoicing. We have cause to praise God. We have cause to rejoice. in the great plan of salvation,
and may we each be enabled to do it, trusting wholly in the
Lord, dependent upon him, committing our way unto him. Trust also
in him and he will bring it to pass, everything that you and
I need in our natural life, and to bring to pass that glory,
that eternal inheritance, which the Lord has prepared for all
his church, may we each be among that number, that one day, by
his grace, by his immutable love, the unworthy sinners will be
found around the throne of God in heaven, praising him throughout
eternity. And he said, I am Abraham's servant. Amen.