Bible Text: Genesis 24: 34-38, 42-49, 58-61 , Matthew 11:25-30 | Preacher: Rev. Jenn Geddes
One of my favourite things to ask when meeting a couple, either for a pastoral visit or for marriage preparation, is “How did you meet?” Sometimes the stories are full of romance, like “I was sitting at the soda counter and in walked this handsome, shy guy and I thought, this is the man I want to marry” to the less romantic, “I saw her at a social and asked if she wanted to dance.” Regardless of the details of the story, often when people tell me how they met, there is a smile, a spark, even a little joy that comes when recalling the memory. In this modern age I hear more and more about couples meeting on line. Perhaps this is where a slight generational gap may occur but perhaps you have heard of or used sites like plenty of fish or match.com or the increasingly popular app among millennials, “Tinder”. While a lot of the sites use profiles and match people up based on likes and dislikes, Tinder is fairly simple; all you do is see a picture of a person and if you think they are worth pursuing you swipe right, if not, you swipe left. In turn they too will swipe left or right and if both swipe right Tinder will tell you there’s a match and will set up a private messaging system. For the record, I had to Google how Tinder worked. I have never used it myself. Many of us might hear about how superficial this type of app is and be concerned about how it seems impossible to base relationships just on looks alone; what about the connection, what about falling in love, what about at the very least having a meaningful conversation. We might hear about Tinder and think, “What is this world coming to?” But our love story or the match making narrative that we hear in Genesis tells us that for millennia, people have been meeting in very strange ways and with little knowledge about their potential lifelong mate.
It’s worth pointing out that in the previous chapter we hear the story of Sarah’s death at the age of 127. Why this is worth pointing out is because in some ways it is a passing of the torch. Upon Sarah’s death Abraham feels the need to find a wife for Isaac. As one matriarch dies a new one needs to be found. The story is transitioning from one generation to the next, moving from Abraham’s family to Isaac’s. And of course, we must remember that God’s promise to Abraham was that he would be the father to a great nation. In order for that lineage to continue, the son needs a wife.
Either because Abraham is advanced in years, or with Isaac as the only heir he doesn’t want to risk losing him during a match making journey, Abraham decides to send a servant to find a wife for Isaac. He makes this servant swear that he will not find a wife among the Canaanites but will travel a great distance to Abraham’s previous homeland to find a wife. Already this story is beginning to make us uncomfortable and clearly the servant, while loyal to Abraham, is concerned about this whole deal as well. The servant takes 10 camels and other choice gifts and travels a great distance. He prepares for the task ahead by creating a plan and a dowry. As he approaches the city of Nahor, he begins to get concerned. How on earth is he going to find the perfect wife for Isaac, how will he know that she is of the preferred lineage, how can he be sure of his decision. The servant is carrying a great weight around, a great burden, a task that seems impossible. So, what does he do? He prays. He essentially asks God for a sign; the first woman to offer not only water to the servant but the camels as well will be the one he is to pursue.
As he is wrapping up this prayer, lo and behold, Rebekah approaches. Now a couple of things to note. First, I find it rather frustrating that, when God promised Abraham and Sarah a child, it took God years to fulfil that promise. But then, when this servant prays regarding a wife, the results are almost immediate. The lesson in that is that God knows when things are urgent and God knows when things need time. It is a reminder to us that sometimes our prayers are answered swiftly and sometimes they are answered in God’s time. The second thing to note is something rather interesting about this narrative. In contrast to almost all the other stories about Abraham and his relationship to God, in this story God doesn’t say a word. Previously, throughout Genesis, God engages with the people, speaks out right to them, telling them directly what to do. In this story there is no mention of God directly intervening or telling Abraham, the servant, Rebekah or Isaac what to do and yet God is clearly active and involved. This is a shift that will begin to change the course of the rest of the book of Genesis. It does not mean that God is distant from their concerns. Rather, God answers prayer through the people and through the affirmation of the community. God’s presence is felt through a diversity of ways.
The servant sees Rebekah approaching the well. The well was essentially the neighbourhood pub of its day. It is where couples met and fell in love. Think of Jacob and Rachel, Moses and Zipporah, among others. But again this is unique because it is the servant not the intended meeting the woman at the well. The servant asks for water and Rebekah offers water not only to him, but the camels as well, the first sign. In case you are wondering, one camel can drink close to 25 gallons of water at one time- and there are 10 camels! We will discover just how strong willed and how strong in character Rebekah is in the following chapters but what we discover at this juncture is that Rebekah is physically strong as well. It says in the Scriptures that the servant “gazed at her in silence.” Part of that might have been because she is clearly freakishly strong. There also must have been a part of him that couldn’t believe his prayers had been answered so quickly.
The narrative continues to tell us and confirm that Rebekah is the woman who is to be Isaac’s wife, from her lineage to her willingness. Isaac and Rebekah are about to become central figures within the history of God’s people. However, I want to point out that the servant, who is never given a name, is really the one who should get credit in this story. He exemplifies how we are to live out our relationship with God. The servant is loyal not only to Abraham but to the task set before him. The servant prepares by taking camels and gifts. The servant prays, especially when the task appears overwhelming. The servant pays attention to the signs and carefully, even with caution, follows through. We too should prepare, pray, and pay attention in everything we do. From the mundane tasks of making sure our church is ready to host guests, to choosing a spouse. But the most important part is that the servant is quick to praise God and to witness to others of God’s faithfulness. For as soon as the servant hears of her lineage it says, “The man bowed his head and worshipped the Lord.”
The servant prepares, prays, pays attention and praises. The servant had an incredible task and heavy burden to carry but he prayed and praised in all he did. What a model for us. I do not know the logic behind why this Old Testament passage was paired up with our Gospel lesson, but perhaps this why. The servant personifies what Jesus is saying, the servant finds rest through the incredible relief of prayer. The servant gives over his yoke to God and finds affirmation. And it is worth pointing out again, that even though God does not speak in this story, a change in direction from previous narratives, God does have a voice. God intervenes by responding to prayer through people. Even through God’s very own Son. It is the ultimate love story. Amen