Abraham—Called by God: LIVING IN FELLOWSHIP WITH GOD THE MARRIAGE OF ISAAC A TYPE OF CHRIST MARRYING THE CHURCH

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LIVING IN FELLOWSHIP WITH GOD THE MARRIAGE OF ISAAC A TYPE OF CHRIST MARRYING THE CHURCH

And Isaac went out to meditate in the field at the eventide: and he lifted up his eyes, and saw, and, behold, the camels were coming. And Rebekah lifted up her eyes, and when she saw Isaac, she lighted off the camel.

Genesis 24:63-64

Let us rejoice and exult, and let us give the glory to Him, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready.

Revelation 19:7

The Bible is a divine book composed with the divine concepts. Because of this, it contains many wonderful records, of which Genesis 24 is one. This chapter not only unfolds a living in oneness with God; it also implies something deeper than human living. This is the reason that it is difficult for the human mind to fathom the depths of the Bible. On the surface of Genesis 24, we have a record of human living, but in its depths there lies something divine. Although it is easy to view the surface, it is difficult to probe into the depths.

In Genesis 24 we see a marriage which is a type of Christ marrying the church. In the New Testament we cannot find a verse which says that this marriage is a type of Christ marrying the church. However, the New Testament clearly reveals that Isaac, the son of Abraham, was a type of Christ being Abraham’s unique seed (Gal. 3:16). Based upon the fact that Isaac was a type of Christ, we may infer that Isaac’s marriage was a type of the marriage of Christ.

Because the Bible is a divine book composed with the divine concepts, we can see these concepts in the various biblical records. For example, we are all familiar with the story of Joseph. Although there is no word in the New Testament saying that Joseph was a type of Christ, any reader of the Bible can recognize that Joseph’s story closely resembles that of Christ. Some Bible teachers say that we should not allegorize anything in the Scriptures unless the New Testament indicates that it is an allegory or a type of certain spiritual things. But we should not insist on this, for although the New Testament does not say that Joseph was a type of Christ, every Bible teacher recognizes that Joseph was an excellent type of Christ. As we read the story of Joseph, we see that it depicts the life of Christ. Many incidents in Joseph’s life, such as his betrayal, are similar to those in the life of Christ. In the same principle, because Isaac is a type of Christ and because the marriage of Isaac resembles the marriage of Christ, we may say that the marriage recorded in Genesis 24 is a type of the marriage of Christ.

In Genesis 24 we have four main persons: the father, the son, the servant, and the bride. This is very meaningful. As we come to the New Testament, we see that the Triune God is working together to obtain a bride for the Son. What is the subject of the New Testament? If you say that the subject of the New Testament is just Jesus as our Savior, I would say that this is good, but that it is not all-inclusive. The subject of the New Testament is the Triune God, the Father, the Son, and the Spirit, working together to obtain the bride for the Son. The Father made the plan, the Spirit carries out the Father’s plan, and the Son enjoys what the Father has planned and what the Spirit carries out. Who is the bride? The bride is a part of the human race which will marry the Son and become His counterpart. Matthew 28:19 speaks of the Father, the Son, and the Spirit. In the Acts and Epistles we see how the Spirit works according to the Father’s plan to obtain the bride for the Son. At the end of the New Testament, in the book of Revelation, we see the bride. Revelation 19:7 says, “The marriage of the Lamb is come, and His wife has made herself ready.” Ultimately, the whole New Jerusalem, a city-lady, will be the bride (Rev. 21:2, 9-10). Although such a term as city-lady may sound strange, there is nothing wrong with using it, because the New Jerusalem will be a female, the wife of the Lamb, the counterpart of the Son of God. The entire New Testament is simply a record of the Triune God working together to gain a part of the human race to be the bride, the counterpart, of the Son.

THE FATHER’S PLAN

Firstly, we have the Father’s plan. According to the King James Version, Ephesians 3:11 speaks of “the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord.” The word purpose is an archaic term for the modern word plan. When we speak of God’s plan we are referring to God’s purpose. In eternity past God made a plan, a plan to have the church for Christ (Eph. 3:8-11). God’s plan is not just to have a group of sinners, nor to have a group of redeemed ones. Such a concept is too low. God’s plan is to have a bride for His Son.

We have heard time and time again that Christ came to save sinners. But have you ever heard a message telling you that Christ came to have the bride? John 3:29 says, “He who has the bride is the bridegroom.” In the four Gospels the Lord Jesus told His disciples that He was the Bridegroom (Matt. 9:15). He came not only to save sinners but to have the bride. Are we still sinners? No, we are the bride! Praise the Lord that we are no longer sinners—we are the bride! Should we still come to God confessing our sins in a begging way? No, we must come to Him joyfully, saying, “Praise the Lord! I am so happy that I am no longer a sinner. I’m a part of the bride!” Christ came not merely to be our Savior and Redeemer; He also came to be the Bridegroom. God did not plan to save a group of poor sinners and bring them all into heaven. God planned to take a part of the human race and make them the counterpart of His dear Son. Eventually, in the new heaven and the new earth, we shall not have a group of pitiful sinners; we shall have the bride, the New Jerusalem, the wife of the Lamb.

As we have seen, God the Father planned to take a bride for His Son out of the human race. Abraham, a type of the Father, charged his servant, a type of the Holy Spirit, not to take a wife for his son from the daughters of the Canaanites but from Abraham’s kindred (24:4, 7). In typology, this indicates that the counterpart of Christ must come from Christ’s race, not from the angels nor from any other creatures. Since Christ was incarnated as a man, humanity has become His race. Do not always think of humanity as being so poor. Humanity is not poor. Because humanity is the race of Christ, it is dear and precious to God. Only out of humanity can God obtain the counterpart for His Son. Therefore, we all must be proud of being a part of humanity and must say, “Praise the Lord that I am a man! Thank Him that I was not created as a part of the angelic race but as part of the human race.”

In Genesis 2 we see that God brought the living creatures to Adam to be named by him. Adam said, “This is a dog, and this is a cat. This is a monkey, and this is a donkey.” As he looked at all those creatures, he did not find his counterpart among them. Thus, God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, took one of his ribs, and built it into a woman as his counterpart (2:21-22). Hence, Adam and Eve were of the same race. This indicates that Christ’s counterpart must come from His race, the human race. We all have been created as the human race, and as a part of the human race we all have been reborn. Only the human race is qualified to be the counterpart of Christ.

THE SPIRIT’S ERRAND

While the father had a plan, the servant received a commission, an errand (v. 33). Abraham commissioned him to go to his race and take a wife for his son. This signifies that God the Father has commissioned God the Spirit. The New Testament reveals such a divine commission.

TO REACH THE CHOSEN BRIDE • As Abraham commissioned his servant to reach the chosen bride (vv. 10-21), so God the Father commissioned God the Spirit to reach the human race. We all can testify that at a certain time the Spirit of God came to us. Perhaps you would say, “I didn’t realize that God the Spirit came to me. I only know that someone preached the gospel to me.” As that person was preaching the gospel to you, you were attracted by what he said and were willing to receive it. Although you did not understand everything he was saying, something deep within you was responding. In our mentality, many of us said, “I don’t like this,” but deep within our spirit we said, “This is very good.” In my early ministry in China I did a great deal of gospel preaching. When the learned Chinese, who thought of Christianity as a foreign religion, heard our preaching, they said in their mentality, “This is a foreign religion; I don’t like it.” But, as many of them later testified, while they were saying this, something deep within them said, “This is what I need.” What was it that caused them to respond in this way deep within? It was the Holy Spirit reaching them.

Rebekah never dreamed that she would be selected to be Isaac’s wife. According to the custom of the time, she simply went to draw water late in the afternoon. But on this day something special happened. Before she came to the well, Abraham’s servant was already there. This indicates the Spirit’s coming to the human race (v. 10). Before we ever heard the preaching of the gospel or came to a gospel meeting, the Holy Spirit was already there waiting.

In Genesis 24, Abraham’s servant, who had come to a well (v. 11), asked a woman to give him a drink of water (v. 17). In John 4, the Lord Jesus, who had come to Jacob’s well (John 4:6), also asked a woman for a drink. Preachers often say that we are thirsty and need the living water to quench our thirst. But have you ever heard that the Holy Spirit is thirsty and needs you to quench His thirst? In Genesis 24 we see a servant who was thirsty after his long journey, and in John 4 we see a Savior who was thirsty after His tiring journey. Who was more thirsty in Genesis 24, the servant or Rebekah? The servant was. Likewise, who was more thirsty in John 4, the Lord Jesus or the Samaritan woman? The Lord Jesus was. Hence, as we preach the gospel, we must tell people that the Father, Son, and Spirit are thirsty for them.

Rebekah did not have the sense that she was thirsty; neither did she feel the need for a husband. It was the servant who was thirsty. By the time he had reached the city of Nahor, he was thirsty both physically and spiritually, thirsting for the woman who would be the proper wife for his master’s son. In John 4, the Lord Jesus also was thirsty both physically and spiritually. As you are reading this message, the Holy Spirit is even now thirsty for you. Will you give Him a drink and quench His thirst?

When we heard the preaching of the gospel in the past, we did not realize that the Holy Spirit was thirsty for us. We might have thought, “Why is this preacher so ambitious to convince me?” But that was not the ambition of the preacher; it was the thirst of the Spirit. As you were listening to the preaching of the gospel, did you not sense that someone was desirous of having you? At the time you were saved, you felt that someone was chasing you. On the one hand, you said, “I don’t like this”; on the other hand, something deep within you said, “You cannot run away.”

As Rebekah went to draw water from the well that day, she was completely innocent, having no idea of what was to happen to her. She did not realize that by giving a man a drink of water and by drawing water for his camels she would be caught. But the father far away had made a plan to take a woman from her race as the wife for his son and had commissioned his servant to carry out this plan. Thus, the servant came to the city of Nahor and purposely waited there by the well. He was a real hunter hunting for a wife for Isaac. If Rebekah had never spoken to the servant, she would not have been caught. But, as we have seen, what happened did not depend on her. The servant had already prayed that the Lord would give him success, saying, “Let it come to pass, that 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 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” (v. 14). While he was still speaking in this way, Rebekah came. When he asked her for a drink of water, she not only gave him a drink, but said, “I will draw water for thy camels also, until they have done drinking” (vv. 18-19). Although Rebekah did not realize it, in doing this, she was caught.

Many of us can testify that, at the beginning, we did not think well of Christ. But at a certain time something deep within began to love Him. When I was a youth, I did not understand very much about Christ, but I did love Him. Although I could not explain it then, I simply began to love Him. But now I know the reason: in eternity, the Father had planned to catch me. Although I am just a little man, I am more than worthy of being caught by God. We all have been caught by Him according to His plan. Let me ask you, did you desire to be saved or to be a Christian? None of us did. But one day we heard the name of Jesus and responded to it in love. This is the sign that we have been chosen. Who brought the servant to the city of Nahor where Rebekah dwelt? And who brought Rebekah to the well where the servant was waiting? Undoubtedly, it was the Spirit of God. Our being saved did not depend on us. It was the result of the Father’s plan and the Spirit’s commission.

Abraham’s servant eventually reached Rebekah through the satisfying water (v. 14). God’s chosen ones are the satisfying water to the Holy Spirit. Today the Holy Spirit comes to seek God’s chosen ones as Christ did at the well of Sychar (John 4:7). If anyone responds to Him and satisfies His desire, this is a sign that he is one of those chosen for Christ and that he will be gained by the Holy Spirit for Christ.

TO BRING THE RICHES OF CHRIST TO THE BRIDE • The Spirit also brings the riches of Christ to the bride (vv. 10, 22, 47, 53). After the camels had finished drinking, the servant put a golden ring on Rebekah’s nose and two bracelets upon her hands (v. 22, Heb.). The best way to catch a person is to catch his nose. That Rebekah had a ring on her nose and bracelets upon her hands meant that she had been caught. After giving her these things, the servant asked her, “Whose daughter art thou? tell me, I pray thee: is there room in thy father’s house for us to lodge in?” (v. 23). Once the servant was brought into Rebekah’s home, he testified of Isaac’s riches. After Rebekah’s brother Laban and father Bethuel accepted the servant’s proposal, he gave Rebekah more of Isaac’s riches, articles of silver, articles of gold, and raiment (v. 53). He also gave precious things to her brother and her mother. This is exactly what John 16:13-15 reveals concerning the Spirit. In these verses, the Lord Jesus said that the Spirit will not speak of Himself, but that He will glorify the Son. All that the Father has is His, and the Spirit receives of His and discloses it to the disciples. Suppose Abraham’s servant had said to Laban, “It is difficult for Abraham to earn a living in Canaan, and his son Isaac is not healthy. I have been sent to get a helper for him.” Do you think that after hearing such a thing Rebekah would have said, “I will go”? No, she would have run away instead. But the testimony of Abraham’s servant was not poor; rather, it was very rich. The servant said that the Lord had blessed his master Abraham, that he had become great, that he had given all things to his son Isaac, and that his master had charged him to find a wife for his son. As Rebekah was listening to this testimony, she was attracted to Isaac and was willing to go to him.

This is a picture of how the Holy Spirit comes to us testifying of the riches of Christ. Today Christ is the One appointed to inherit all the riches of the Father. We know this because the Spirit has told us of it through the Scriptures. Because of the Spirit’s testimony, we have all been attracted to Christ. Every saved one who loves and seeks the Lord has been attracted in this way. We do not care for the things that the worldlings are seeking. We enjoy coming to the church meetings and telling the Lord Jesus how much we love Him. Oh, we love Him, we seek Him, and we praise Him! Over and over we say, “Lord Jesus, I love You.”

Rebekah realized the riches of Isaac through the gifts which Abraham’s servant brought forth to her. Today we realize the riches of Christ, which He has received of the Father, through the gifts that the Spirit has dispensed to us. Before Rebekah met Isaac in the good land, she had participated in and enjoyed Isaac’s inheritance. It is the same with us in partaking of Christ’s inheritance. Before we meet Him, we enjoy the gifts of the Spirit as a foretaste of the full taste of His riches.

TO CONVINCE THE BRIDE • The Spirit also convinces the bride (vv. 54-58). After the servant, typifying the Spirit, brought Rebekah the riches, she was convinced and was willing to marry Isaac. Although her relatives wanted her to linger, Rebekah, upon hearing the servant’s testimony of Isaac, said, “I will go” (v. 58). She was willing to go to Isaac in the land of Canaan. Likewise, we are willing to go to Christ. Although we have never seen Him, we have been attracted by Him and we love Him (1 Pet. 1:8). Although Rebekah had never met Isaac, she loved him. When she heard about him, she simply loved him and wanted to go to a land far off to be with him. As long as we have the willingness to go to Christ, it is a sign that we are the chosen Rebekah. As I have watched the young people loving Jesus, I have said, “What are all these young people doing here? Why don’t they seek the things of the world?” But deep within, I know the reason. We have all been convinced that Christ is the wonderful One. He is the most lovable One in the whole universe. How we love Him! As Rebekah was riding on the camel to be with Isaac, she must have said many times, “Isaac, I love you! Isaac, I want to see you and be with you!” It is the same with us today. As we are traveling on our long journey, we say over and over again, “Jesus, I love You. Jesus, I long to meet You and be in Your presence.”

TO BRING THE BRIDE TO CHRIST • Eventually, the servant brought Rebekah to Isaac (vv. 51, 61-67). Although it was a long journey, he brought her through and presented her to Isaac as his bride. The Holy Spirit has convinced us and now He is bringing us to Christ. Although it is a long journey, eventually He will bring us through and present us to Christ as His lovely bride.

THE CHURCH’S RESPONSE

Now we must see the church’s response. As we have seen, Rebekah responded immediately, being willing to go with the servant to Isaac. Although there is within our old, fallen nature a reluctance to follow the Lord immediately, we cannot deny that there is also within us the willingness to follow Him. Although we are still in this old nature, it is nevertheless easy for us to follow the Lord. It is much easier to follow Him than not to follow Him. Do not believe the lie of the enemy that you can easily be frustrated in following the Lord. Tell the enemy, “Nothing can frustrate my desire to follow the Lord. Deep within me there is the longing to follow Him.” Satan is a liar. Sometimes he even lies to us through preachers who speak negative things and tell us that we cannot love the Lord Jesus. Do not believe the lies, but declare, “No! I can and I do love the Lord Jesus!” We may even lie to ourselves, saying, “I’m so weak. I just can’t follow the Lord. I’d better turn around and go back.” We must reject this lie and say, “I will never go back. I will follow the Lord Jesus.” Never believe the lie that you do not love the Lord. Tell the enemy, “I love the Lord Jesus. My loving Him does not depend upon my ability to love. It depends on His being so lovable. Because He is lovable, I cannot help loving Him.” If I gave you a pair of old shoes, you would reject them, saying, “I don’t care for those!” But if I gave you some diamonds, you would easily love them, not because you have the ability to love but because the diamonds are lovable. Likewise, we do not love the Lord Jesus because we are able to love; we love Him because He is so lovable. In Genesis 24, it was not Rebekah who was able to love Isaac and respond to him; it was Isaac who was lovable.

DOING WHAT THE SPIRIT EXPECTS • Our response to the Holy Spirit is that we always do what He expects. Abraham’s servant expected that Rebekah would give him a drink of water and then draw water for his ten camels, and Rebekah did exactly what he expected (vv. 18-20), satisfying the servant’s thirst. Often we have unconsciously done what the Holy Spirit expected, satisfying His desire, doing it without knowing what He expected. Our doing this was a sign that we were under the moving of the Spirit.

RECEIVING THE GIFTS • After doing what the servant expected, Rebekah received the gifts. Firstly, the servant put a golden ring on her nose. Although ladies today like to put rings on their ears, here the ring is put on Rebekah’s nose. In reading the Song of Songs, I was surprised to see that the Lord does not appraise the ears of the seeking one. Instead, He appraises her nose, saying, “Thy nose is as the tower of Lebanon which looketh toward Damascus,” and, “The smell of thy nose like apples” (7:4, 8). In Song of Songs 2:3, the seeker says, “As the apple tree among the trees of the wood, so is my beloved among the sons. I sat under his shadow with great delight, and his fruit was sweet to my taste.” Because she had been enjoying the apples, her nose had the smell of apples. What is the significance of this? The function of the nose is to smell. Putting a golden ring on Rebekah’s nose meant that her smelling function had been caught by the divine nature. Once we have this ring on our nose, we have the divine smell and taste. As the book of Hebrews says, we have tasted of the heavenly gift, the good word of God, and the works of power of the coming age (Heb. 6:4-6). Before I was saved, I had a particular taste. However, after I received the Lord, my taste changed. I had received the divine taste. Is there a golden ring on your nose? Is your nose like the high tower of Lebanon? According to Leviticus 21:18, no one with a flat nose could serve as a priest. We all must have a high nose, not a flat one.

We, the saved ones, have the divine smelling function with the divine taste. Since we have this taste, there are many things in the department stores which we cannot buy. What tells us not to buy these things? The golden ring on our nose. By our nose with the golden ring we smell that something is wrong with certain items in the stores. Because we have such a nose, we do not need others to tell us what to do or what not to do. The function of our smelling and tasting organ tells us what matches God’s taste and what does not. We must have a high-tower nose and a nose with the smell of apples. Our spiritual nose must be a high tower in the Spirit. Our spiritual nose must be with the smell of Christ. The more we enjoy Christ as the apple tree, the more we have a nose full of His apple smell.

The servant also put two bracelets on Rebekah’s hands (vv. 22, 47). In a sense, she was handcuffed. According to the New Testament concept, this means that we have received the divine function (Rom. 12:4). The more we are handcuffed by the Spirit, the more gift we receive of Him. We have not only received the divine taste; we have also acquired the divine function. The two bracelets given to Rebekah were ten shekels in weight and thus could fulfill the requirements of God’s commandments. The weight of the golden ring on her nose, on the contrary, was just a half shekel. This half shekel signifies the first taste, the foretaste. The half we have tasted indicates that another half, the full taste, is coming. While the taste is only in part, the functions are in full. Do not say that you have only half a function. No, your function, your talent, is complete. Everyone has at least one full talent. The taste which we have received of the Holy Spirit is only partial, but the divine function which we have received of Him is complete.

Rebekah also received articles of silver, articles of gold, and raiment (v. 53), all of which indicate the riches of Christ. At first, Rebekah received a golden ring on her nose and two bracelets on her hands. After the acceptance of the servant’s errand, more riches were brought forth. Likewise, after we came into the church life and accepted the Spirit’s commission, the riches of Christ, the articles of silver, the articles of gold, and the raiment, were brought forth for our enjoyment.

By all these details we can realize that the record in Genesis 24 is altogether divine and implies the divine concept. This is not my allegorization; it is recorded in this way. Why was the golden ring just half a shekel and not three quarters of a shekel? Why were the bracelets ten shekels and not nine or eleven shekels? Why did the servant not bring forth all the other riches until his errand had been accepted? All this matches the revelation in the New Testament. Today we are not only enjoying the golden ring on our nose and the bracelets on our hands; we are also enjoying the articles of silver and of gold and the raiment. In the church life all the riches of Christ are ours.

FOLLOWING THE SPIRIT • After receiving and enjoying all these riches, Rebekah followed the servant, traveling through the desert on a camel until she met Isaac (vv. 58, 61-65). Likewise, we are following the Spirit, traveling a long journey on a “camel.” When we meet Christ, we shall dismount from our “camel.” All the modern conveniences, such as telephones, automobiles, etc., are our “camels” today. Rebekah traveled through the desert on top of a camel, and we are traveling through the desert on today’s modern “camels.” According to Leviticus 11, a camel is unclean; yet it is useful. Many of today’s conveniences are not clean in the eyes of God. Nevertheless, they enable us to travel through the desert. When we meet Him, we shall leave the “camels.”

THE SON’S MARRIAGE

In a good sense, the son, Isaac, did nothing. This indicates that everything is planned by the Father and carried out by the Spirit. All the Son does is receive the bride.

Isaac received Rebekah at eventide (vv. 63-64). This implies that the marriage of Christ will be at the eventide of the age. At the close of this age, Christ will come to meet His bride.

Isaac brought Rebekah into his mother Sarah’s tent and loved her (v. 67). As we have seen, Sarah typifies grace. Hence, this means that Christ will meet us in grace as well as in love.

This chapter ends with the words, “Isaac was comforted after his mother’s death.” If I had been the writer, I would have said that Rebekah was comforted after her long journey. But the Bible does not say this. Do not consider your comfort, your satisfaction; rather, consider Christ’s comfort, Christ’s satisfaction. If Christ has no comfort and satisfaction, we cannot have any comfort and satisfaction either. Our satisfaction depends on His. Our comfort is His comfort, and His satisfaction is ours. Christ is now waiting for His comfort. When will He have it? On the day of His marriage. That day will come.