Genesis – Isaac & Rebekah – Genesis 25:19-26

Genesis: Isaac & Rebeka Week 2- Trusting God in the Waiting

Genesis 25:19–26

¹⁹ These are the family records of Isaac son of Abraham. Abraham fathered Isaac.

²⁰ Isaac was forty years old when he took as his wife Rebekah daughter of Bethuel the Aramean from Paddan-aram and sister of Laban the Aramean.

²¹ Isaac prayed to the Lord on behalf of his wife because she was childless. The Lord was receptive to his prayer, and his wife Rebekah conceived.

²² But the children inside her struggled with each other, and she said, “Why is this happening to me?” So she went to inquire of the Lord.

²³ And the Lord said to her: Two nations are in your womb; two peoples will come from you and be separated. One people will be stronger than the other, and the older will serve the younger.

²⁴ When her time came to give birth, there were indeed twins in her womb.

²⁵ The first one came out red-looking, covered with hair like a fur coat, and they named him Esau.

²⁶ After this, his brother came out grasping Esau’s heel with his hand. So he was named Jacob. Isaac was sixty years old when they were born.

– This morning, I want to talk to you about trusting God in the waiting

• What do you do…
• When God gives you a promise…
• And the reality of your life
• And the circumstances around you
• Only seems to give you silence?
• When you’re holding onto
• What His Word says…
• That He’s with you…
• That He hears you…
• That He will come through…
• I mean
• You’ve prayed…
• You’ve trusted…
• You’ve stepped out in faith…
• And nothing but silence and waiting
• You may not even use the word “Promise”…
• But you know what it’s like
• To hope that God will respond to your prayer.
• And if we’re honest…
• Waiting is one of the hardest parts of following Jesus.
• Today, that is exactly where Genesis 25 meets us.
• Genesis 25
• Is not a moment of immediate breakthrough…
• Instead, it’s a moment of delay.
• This is not a story of quick answers…
• It’s a story of waiting,
• Tension, and
• Unanswered questions.
• And here’s why this matters to us today:
• We are five days into a 40-day prayer challenge.
• As a church,
• I have asked us to commit to 40 days of intentional prayer
• Seeking God daily
• And asking Him to move in specific ways.
• Many of us have some big prayers
• Circled on these cards
• Hoping and believing for God to answer.
• Specific prayers.
• Bold prayers.
• Faith-filled prayers.
• And five days in…
• You may be wondering…

“Is anything happening?”

“Is God listening?”

“Did I hear Him right?”

• And here’s what I want you to see today:

Anyone Can Believe God In The Moment…

Real Faith Shows Up In The Waiting

• So, let’s dive in
• Genesis 25 is about a transition moment.
• And from this transition moment
• We can learn four truths
• Here is the first one

1. God is working— Even When We Don’t See It

• To see this in the text
• We have to back up closer
• To the beginning of Genesis 25 and read
• The first part of

Genesis 25:11

¹¹ After Abraham’s death…

• Don’t miss that.
• Abraham is now gone.
• The man who received the promise…
• The man who walked with God…
• The man who waited decades to see God answer…
• He’s gone.
• One might expect the story to slow down…
• Or even stop.
• But it doesn’t.
• Because the very next thing we’re told is this:

Genesis 25:11

¹¹ After Abraham’s death, God blessed his son Isaac, who lived near Beer-lahai-roi.

• God blessed Isaac.
• You see the promise didn’t die with Abraham.
• Because the promise was never dependent on Abraham.
• It was always dependent on God.
• And some of us need to hear that today.
• Because we tend to think…

“If this person leaves… it’s over.”

“If this opportunity closes… it’s over.”

“If this season ends… then God must be done.”

• But Genesis 25 reminds us:
• God’s Work Doesn’t Stop When Our Situation Changes.
• God is still working…
• Even when the season changes.
• Even when people change.
• Even when circumstances shift.
• Even when what you expected looks different.
• Isaac didn’t replace Abraham.
• He stepped into what God was already doing.
• And that’s important for us.
• Because sometimes we’re so focused on what was…
• That we miss what God is doing now.
• And here’s the truth:
• God’s promise is bigger than your timeline.
• It’s bigger than your expectations.
• It’s bigger than your plan.
• It’s even bigger than your understanding.
• Just because you don’t see movement…
• Doesn’t mean God isn’t moving.
• Just because you don’t see progress…
• Doesn’t mean God isn’t working.
• And for some of you…
• This is where your faith is being tested right now.
• Not in what you can see…
• But in what you can’t.
• Will you trust that God is working…
• Even when you don’t see it?

Hebrews 11:1 says it this way

Now faith is the reality of what is hoped for, the proof of what is not seen.

• Will you put your hope in the outcome or the God of the outcome?
• Which brings us to our second truth:

2. Waiting is part of God’s plan

• The first part of Genesis 25:21 tells us

“Isaac prayed to the Lord on behalf of his wife because she was childless…”

• This should feel familiar.
• Because this is the exact same struggle
• Abraham and Sarah had.
• Barrenness.
• Delay.
• Impossibility.
• And don’t miss what Isaac does.
• Isaac doesn’t manipulate.
• He doesn’t try to force the promise.
• He doesn’t take matters into his own hands.
• What does he do?

He prays!

• But notice—he doesn’t just pray for himself.
• He prays on behalf of his wife.
• He carries her burden to God.
• He brings her pain before the Lord.
• He stands in the gap for someone he loves.
• That is the picture of intercession.
• Rebekah was the one experiencing barrenness in the visible sense…
• But Isaac treated it as their burden, not just hers.
• That’s covenant love.
• In marriage, healthy love says:
• Your pain is not your pain alone.
• Your struggle is not your struggle alone.
• We bring this to God together.
• And this goes beyond marriage.
• Some of you know someone who is hurting.
• Someone who is stuck.
• Someone who cannot seem to break through.
• One of the greatest gifts you can give them
• Is to pray on their behalf.
• To carry their name into the presence of God.
• We are in a 40-day prayer challenge.
• Maybe your biggest prayer these 40 days
  is not even for you.
• Maybe it’s for a spouse.
• A child.
• A friend.
• A prodigal.
• A person battling sickness or fear.
• Isaac reminds us:
• Sometimes faith looks like praying
• For someone else until breakthrough comes.
• And ultimately, Isaac points us to Jesus.
• Because Jesus is the greater intercessor.
• He not only prayed for others
• He now lives to intercede for us.

Hebrews 7:25

Therefore, he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, since he always lives to intercede for them.

And then the second half of

Genesis 25:21 says

…The Lord was receptive to his prayer, and his wife Rebekah conceived.”

• And we can read that…
• And move on quickly.
• But here is what I don’t want you to miss
• This wasn’t immediate.
• Isaac is 40 when he marries Rebekah.
• And later, verse 26 tells us He’s 60 when the twins are born.
• That’s 20 years.
• 20 years of waiting.
• 20 years of praying.
• 20 years of trusting.
• 20 years of wondering…

“God, are You going to do what You said you would do?”

• And this is where it gets real for us.
• Because we don’t mind praying…
• We just struggle with the waiting.
• We’ll pray for a few days…
• Maybe a few weeks…
• But 20 years?
• That’s a different kind of faith.
• And here’s what we see in the text:
• Waiting Is Not A Detour In God’s Plan…It Is Part Of God’s Plan.
• Sometimes God allows seasons
• Where the promise feels impossible…
• So that when it happens,
• Only He gets the credit.
• And this is where
• I want to connect again to our 40-day prayer challenge.
• Because for some of us…
• After a few days of praying
• Or we make it all the way to the end of the 40 days
• And there is still no answer
• We can be tempted:
• To give up.
• To stop praying.
• To lower our expectations.
• To question if God will ever answer
• But Genesis 25 reminds us:
• Delay is not denial.
• Just because God hasn’t answered yet…
• Doesn’t mean God isn’t listening.
• Just because we don’t see movement…
• Doesn’t mean God isn’t working.
• Some of the most powerful things
• God will ever do in your life…
• Will happen after a season of waiting.
• So don’t quit in the waiting.
• Don’t lose faith in the silence.
• Don’t walk away
• Just because it’s taking longer than you thought.
• Because God is not behind.
• He is working.
• Which brings us to our third truth

3. God Works Differently Than We Expect

• Rebekah finally conceives…
• After years of waiting…
• After years of praying…
• The promise is finally moving.
• But then something unexpected happens.

Verse 22 says:

But the children inside her struggled with each other, and she said, “Why is this happening to me?” So she went to inquire of the Lord.

• This isn’t peaceful.
• This is conflict.
• This is tension.
• This is so intense…
• That Rebekah says:

“Why is this happening to me?”

• Think about that.
• She prayed for this.
• She waited for this.
• She longed for this.
• And now that it’s happening…
• It doesn’t feel like she thought it would.
• And some of us know exactly what that feels like.
• God answers your prayer…
• But not in the way you expected.
• The door opens…
• But it’s harder than you thought.
• The promise starts to move…
• But it comes with tension you didn’t see coming.
• So what does she do?
• She doesn’t run.
• She doesn’t assume.

“So she went to inquire of the Lord.”

• And God answers her in

Genesis 25:23

Two nations are in your womb; two peoples will come from you and be separated. One person will be stronger than the other, and the older will serve the younger.

• Don’t miss this.
• This isn’t just about two brothers fighting…
• This is about two nations.
• Two futures.
• And God’s plan moving forward through one of them.
• And what God says next…
• Would have been shocking.
• Because in their culture…
• The older always led.
• The firstborn always carried the blessing.
• That’s how it worked.

But God says:

• Not this time.
• The older will serve the younger.
• In other words:
• I’m Not Working According To Your Expectations.
• I’m Working According To My Purpose.
• And here’s where this hits us.
• Because we all have expectations.
• We expect God to work a certain way.
• In a certain timeline.
• Through certain people.
• But God doesn’t follow our expectations.

God Will Often Work In Ways You Wouldn’t Choose…
So You Can’t Confuse His Power With Your Plan.

• And this is where faith gets real.
• Will you trust God
• When He doesn’t do it the way you expected?
• Will you trust Him
• When the answer looks different than you imagined?
• Will you trust Him
• When the process feels uncomfortable?
• Because sometimes…
• The very thing you prayed for…
• Will come in a way that stretches you.
• Not because God is against you…
• But because He is doing something bigger than you can see.
• And that’s why:

God Doesn’t Work According To What Makes Sense To Us…
He Works According To What Brings Him The Most Glory.

• Which brings us to our final truth:

4. It’s Always Been About Grace

• Abraham had other sons…
• But Isaac was the child of promise.
• Isaac and Rebekah had two sons…
• But before they were even born…
• God declared His purpose.
• Why?
• So no one could say:
• “I earned this.”
• “I deserved this.”
• “I made this happen.”
• And the New Testament makes this even clearer.
• Romans 9 actually points back to this exact moment
• Isaac, Rebekah, Jacob, and Esau
• To explain how God’s promise really works.
• Listen to what Paul says.

Romans 9:10–12 says,
¹⁰ And not only that, but Rebekah conceived children through one man, our father Isaac.

¹¹ For though her sons had not been born yet or done anything good or bad, so that God’s purpose according to election might stand—

¹² not from works but from the one who calls—she was told, The older will serve the younger.

• Did you catch that?
• Before they were born…
• Before they had done anything good…
• Before they had done anything bad…
• God made a choice.
• Why?

Verse 11 tells us:
“So that God’s purpose… might stand.”

• Not based on what they would do…
• Not based on who deserved it…
• Not based on effort…
• But based on God who calls.
• And then Paul keeps going.

Romans 9:16 says,

So then, it does not depend on human will or effort, but on God who shows mercy.

• That’s the point.
• And this doesn’t mean God is unfair…
• It means God is merciful.
• None of us deserve this…
• Which is exactly why grace is so powerful.

It’s Not About What You Do For God…
It’s About What God Has Done For You.

• And this is where it points us to Jesus.
• Because Isaac was a child of promise…
• But he was never the final promise.
• Jesus was and is.
• Jesus is the true and better promised Son.
• The one God sent—not because we earned it…
• Not because we deserved it…
• But because He is merciful.
• He lived the life we couldn’t live…
• He died the death we deserved…
• And He rose again so we could be brought into God’s family.
• And just like Isaac’s birth was impossible without God…
• Our salvation is impossible without Jesus.
• And the good news is this:
• You don’t become part of God’s family
• Because of your background…
• You don’t become His child
• Because you try hard enough…
• You don’t earn your way in…
• You are brought in by grace.
• And if you’ve never trusted Him…
• This is where it begins.
• Not by trying harder…
• But by surrendering your life to Jesus.
• Romans 9 shows us this clearly:
• It’s not about human effort…
• It’s about God’s mercy.

• Let me bring this right into your life…
• And right into this 40-day prayer challenge.
• Because Genesis 25 is not just their story…
• It’s meant to shape ours.

1. Where are you being asked to trust God right now?

• Where does your life feel like Genesis 25?
• Where does it feel quiet?
• Delayed?
• Unclear?
• Like heaven has gone silent?
• Where are you holding onto what God says…
• But your circumstances seem to say something different?
• Where are you tempted to believe
• What you can see…
• More than what God has said?
• And instead of running from that place…
• What if you leaned into it?
• What if this season is not punishment…
• But preparation?
• What if the waiting place
• Is where God wants to deepen your faith?

2. Will you keep praying — for yourself and for others?

• Isaac prayed.
• Not once.
• Not casually.
• Not when it was convenient.
• But persistently.
• And not just for himself.
• He prayed on behalf of his wife.
• He carried someone else’s burden to God.
• He brought another person’s pain
• Into the presence of the Lord.
• And some of you need to hear this:
• This is where you decide:
• Am I going to pray based on what I see?
• Or based on who God is?
• And maybe your biggest prayer these 40 days
• Is not even for you.
• Maybe it’s for a spouse.
• A child.
• A friend.
• A prodigal.
• Someone battling sickness.
• Someone buried in fear.
• Will you keep carrying their name to Jesus?

3. Will you trust God’s way — when the answer looks different than expected?

• Rebekah finally conceived.
• But the answer came with tension.
• The blessing came with discomfort.
• The promise moved…
• But not in the way she imagined.
• God may not do it the way you expected.
• He may not do it in your timing.
• He may not do it through your preferred plan.
• But He will be faithful.
• Will you trust Him
• When His way stretches you?

4. Will you trust that grace is still the answer?

• At New City, we say our mission is:
• To inspire you to trust in and live like Jesus.
• And trust is proven here.
• Not when everything is clear…
• But when nothing is.
• Not when answers come quickly…
• But when you have to keep walking by faith.
• Not when you feel strong…
• But when grace is all you have left.
• And maybe today…
• You need to stop trying harder
• And start trusting deeper.
• Maybe you need to surrender your life to Jesus.
• Maybe you need to remember:
• It’s not about what you do for God…
• It’s about what God has done for you.
• Will you trust His grace today?
• So here’s the question:
• Will you walk out of here discouraged by the waiting…
• Or strengthened in it?
• Because anyone can believe God in the moment…
• Real faith shows up in the waiting.

• So here’s what I want you to do today.
• Be a part of the 40-day Prayer Challenge
• It’s not to late
• If you have not filled out a card
• You can grab one in a moment
• And each morning at 7:14 when you get the text from me
• Stop and pray
• Come for the next 5 Wednesday nights
• For prayer at 7:14 (childcare is available)
• Why 7:14?

2 Chronicles 7:14

“If my people, who are called by my name, humble themselves, pray and seek my face, and turn from their evil ways, then I will hear from heaven,

forgive their sin, and heal their land.”

• Join us as we pray together
• Second, a practical step for right now
• It’s time to pray!
• We are going to form prayer circles
• And ask God to move on the thing we need the most