Sermons and Outlines

Genesis 24:51-67

WILT THOU GO WITH THIS MAN

Intro: Ill. The Context. Abraham the old patriarch is dying. Before he does, he wants to find a bride for his son Isaac. He sends a nameless servant to his relatives home to find this bride. The servant does what he was sent to do. He finds a bride for Isaac and succeeds in his mission returning home with a bride for his master’s son, Isaac. For Rebekah, her encounter with Abraham’s servant came down to one important question, “Wilt thou go with this man?”, v. 58. She said, “I will go” and this response changed her life forever!

From a spiritual viewpoint, everything boils down to the very same question. You see, in this story, Abraham is a picture of God the Father. The Servant represents the Holy Spirit. Rebekah represents the church, or those saved by grace and Isaac is a picture of the Lord Jesus Christ. God the Father has sent His Holy Spirit into this world to call out a bride for Jesus Christ, John 16:7-11. Like Abraham’s servant, the Holy Spirit does not promote Himself, but He talks about Jesus and calls lost people to come to Him for salvation, John 16:13-14. Those who have Jesus revealed to their hearts by the Holy Spirit and hear Him say “Wilt thou go with this man?”, are brought face to face with the greatest question man will ever face! How you answer that question determines where you spend your eternity!

Today, I want to look at this passage from Rebekah’s perspective. I want to point out a few thought that should make saying “Yes!” to the question “Wilt thou go with this man?” a little easier.

I. SOME MATTERS ARE VERY CLEAR TO REBEKAH

A. Isaac Is A Man Of Mystery - (Ill. The name of this man is not even revealed to Rebekah!) (Ill. This servant had over 500 miles to teach Rebekah about Isaac. Ill. His bag of riches.) (Ill. To a lost person, Jesus Christ can be mysterious and frightening. Lost people have all kinds of questions and fears) (Ill. The best way to learn about Jesus is to come to Him by faith. The Spirit of God will teach us all about Him as we journey toward home! The Holy Spirit is in the teaching business - John 16:13-14.) (Ill. We will never get Him all the way figured out, until we get home!)

B. Isaac Is A Man Of Money - (Ill. Everything Abraham owns is in the hand of the servant, v. 35-36. Laban is very interested in this! (Ill. Everything the Heavenly Father owns has been given to His son, Rom. 8:17, and He shares all He has with His Bride.) (Ill. The scope of this thought - Deut. 10:14; 1 Cor. 10:26 - Look up and look around, everything you see belongs to Him and to us! Ill. 1 Cor. 2:9!) (Note: He is well able to care for His bride!)

C. Isaac Is A Man Of Matrimony - (Ill. V. 4, 34-49 - Isaac is a man looking for a bride!) (Ill. It was every woman’s desire, in that day, to marry and have children. For Rebekah this must have been thrilling! Out of all the women this rich, eligible man could have chosen, he chose her!) (Note: Don’t take to call of God to be saved lightly! To be called to come to Him for salvation is an honor beyond compare! When you think of the lost man’s condition, Eph. 2:1-3; 12 and what the Lord wants to do for him, Eph. 2:13-22, it is an honor to be called and chosen to come to him for salvation!)

II. SOME MATTERS ARE VERY CONCEALED TO REBEKAH

A. Her Road Is Concealed - She does not know what lies between where she is and where he is! There are many unknowns along the way, but the servant has all the necessary resources to make the journey successful! (Ill. Some of the questions she might have had!) (Ill. None of us knows what will happen between here and Heaven! But, we can rest in the sure knowledge that He knows and plans the road ahead, John 10:4; Psa. 37:25, and that He will go with us all the way home, Matt. 28:20; Heb. 13:5!) (Ill. Not a single one who begins the journey with Jesus will fail to make it home! The road may be rough and it may be fraught with peril, but we are ALL going through!)

B. Her Reception Is Concealed - (Ill. When he sees her what will he think of her? Will she be accepted? Will she be loved? Notice that all her fears were in vain, v. 67!) (Ill. My lost friend, you need not wonder whether Jesus will have you or not. If you will come to Him, He will never turn you away, John 6:37!) (Ill. If you are already saved, you need not fear His rejection at the end of the journey!)

C. Her Reward Is Concealed - What is in this for Rebekah? Is this offer for real? If I could answer her, I would tell her, “Rebekah, you get a new Father, a new Family, a new Faith, a new Fortune, a new Future, a new Fame. Rebekah, you get more than you could ever imagine when you get Isaac!”) (Ill. The world, the flesh and the devil will try to tell the believer that there is no payoff in serving God. But, you remember this: the rewards for coming to Jesus are without number and without limit, 1 Cor. 2:9; Rom. 8:32; Eph. 1:3.)

III. SOME MATTERS ARE VERY CERTAIN TO REBEKAH

A. She Is Willing To Choose - v. 58 - Even though she does not know all there is to know about Isaac, she knows that she wants to be with him. She doesn’t have all the information, but she has enough to choose! He sounds just like the man she wants to be married to. (Ill. Salvation boils down to your wanting Him more than you want anything else in life. Being saved means coming to a place where you are willing to choose Jesus over your sins; Heaven over Hell; God over Satan. Salvation is about you reaching a place where you want to be free more than you want to be bound! Salvation is about you coming to a place of faith in Jesus Christ alone, Acts 16:31; Eph. 2:8-9. Rebekah looked around and said, “I want him more than anything I have here. I will go!” Salvation comes down to your being willing to make Him your choice, after He has made you His choice, John 15:16!) (Note: Don’t allow anything to stand between you and your soul’s salvation! Nothing you can name in this world or in the world to come is more valuable than your being saved, Mark 8:36-37! Ill. Mark 9:43-48!

B. She Is Willing To Change - Rebekah has come to the place where she esteems Isaac as being more valuable than anything else in her life. She is willing to turn her back on everything to go be with Him. She is willing to live in a new place, in a new way, under new management! (Note: This is the essence of salvation. It is a total life change, because it is a new life, period, John 3:3, 7; 2 Cor. 5:17. Coming to Christ means coming to the place where you are willing to turn your back on the old life forever and embrace a new way of living and walking. Many balk at this point, but a heart of repentance is a necessary component of salvation, Luke 13:3!)

C. She Is Willing To Commit - Rebekah has reached the place where she is willing to commit the rest of her life to being Isaac’s wife. She is willing to give her all to him! (Note: Salvation is not about mere profession, it is about total commitment! (Ill. Chicken and pig!) There is no place in the church for so-called “easy-believism”. Salvation is a radical commitment to follow Jesus Christ for the rest of your life, with no reservations! Salvation comes when a lost sinner is convicted of his sins and is drawn to Christ. When that sinner believes the Gospel and repents of sin, he or she is saved! Salvation is a total, radical, permanent commitment!)

Conc: Rebekah made her decision to go to Isaac. As a result, she was loved, blessed and lived a happy, joyous life. It all happened because she said, “I will go!” when she heard the question, “Wilt thou go with this man?”

What about you my friend? Jesus is calling, isn’t He? In your heart, you are hearing that same question asked today, “Wilt thou go with this man?” Well, will you? If you will come to Jesus, He will save you and change your life forever. You and you alone can decide what you will do with Jesus!

Jesus is standing at your heart's door.

Standing and knocking, He's knocked before;

This is the question we face once more:

What will you do with Jesus?

At your sad heart He is knocking still,

Longing to enter your soul to thrill;

You must accept or reject His will:

What will you do with Jesus?

Oh, will you leave Him alone outside?

Or, will you choose Him whate'er betide?

This is the question you must decide:

What will you do with Jesus?

Neutral you cannot be;

Someday your heart will be asking:

What will He do with me?