What will be Your Legacy? (Genesis 35:22-29)

I mentioned in an earlier devotional that Isaac could only be considered the main character in a couple passages of Scripture, so there isn’t enough material to do an entire series on him. That is why our previous series was on Isaac’s father, The Life of Abraham, and our current series is on Isaac’s children, The Life of Jacob and Esau. Our current series will be completed this week and we will soon start a new series on Isaac’s grandson, The Life of Joseph. But Isaac never makes enough of an impression for a full series to be devoted to his life. Even his death is mentioned as a bit of a side note, as we will see in today’s passage.

Please read Genesis 35:22-29.

After the birth of Benjamin and the death of Rachel, the 35^th chapter of Genesis concludes with three footnotes:

1. Reuben slept with Dan and Naphtali’s mom
2. A listing of the twelve tribes of Israel, and
3. The death of Isaac

Isaac’s death doesn’t receive any more attention than just a few verses in Scripture. He lived a quiet life, and he died a quiet death. His only significance is that God used Him to continue the godly line that was promised to Abraham, and that God used him to rear a son who would become Israel. But when you look a little closer at these two achievements, you’ll notice that God accomplished them both in spite of Isaac.

First, God promised Abraham that he would be blessed with many descendants who would inherit the promised land and eventually save the world. And God promised Abraham that this would all happen through Isaac. So Abraham raised Isaac well, teaching him to follow God, and teaching him the necessary skills to be successful in the land. Abraham even sent his servant out to find a suitable wife for Isaac who would help lead him deeper in his relationship with the Lord. Because of Abraham’s faithfulness, God blessed Isaac. Isaac had nothing to do with it!

Second, Isaac was blessed with two sons, one of whom would continue the promised godly line. Before they were even born, God chose Jacob. But after they began to grow and demonstrate their talents, Isaac chose Esau. He may not have actually abused Jacob, but he certainly neglected him and hurt him by always favoring his brother. Jacob even ran away from home to get away from this difficult situation (technically Isaac sent him away, but that was just an excuse that Rebekah concocted to justify Jacob’s fleeing). Yet, despite Isaac’s unjust treatment of Jacob, God still would use Jacob to continue His plans for Abraham’s descendants.

Isaac doesn’t exactly rebel against God, but He doesn’t fully submit to God’s plans either. He follows God when He calls, but he doesn’t give his full effort in raising the children God has given him; he acts godly in dealing with his neighbors, but fosters an environment of treachery and deceit in his own house; he praises God and blesses his children in the name of God, but he doesn't trust God to deliver him from Abimelech, and instead lies his way out of trouble.

Even though Isaac is not fully devoted to God, God still uses him for God's purposes. God’s Will will be done, whether we submit to it or not.

God still uses Isaac to raise Jacob and continue the line of Promise that will one day produce the Messiah. But, Isaac’s unwillingness to fully devote himself to the Lord causes him to miss out on the many blessings that he could have accrued. His father is known as the Father of all Believers, his son is renamed Israel, a name that will forever be celebrated, and his grandson will become one of the most powerful people in the known world. Yet, Isaac will die in relative obscurity, and will only be remembered by posterity as the link between the great patriarchs of faith.

When we don’t fully surrender to God, it will not foil His plans. He is God, and He will accomplish all that He has set out to do. But, when we don’t fully surrender to God, it will hurt our legacy. We are the ones who will suffer. We are the ones who will be forgotten.