“And Laban went to shear his sheep: and Rachel had stolen the images that were her father’s.” (Gen. 31:19)
Jacob was a very wealthy man, the Lord had led him to be so, and so we must wonder, what Rachel, as his wife, could afford, why would she take that which was not hers? Again, in this instance, the land of conjecture lies before us, and one thing I have learned in my life about that land is that it leads, most generally, to a place where reality doesn’t exist.
The need to attempt to explain something is, in a sense, built within us, and many learned men go to that land and come back with what they call facts, but are nothing more than deductive suppositions. Rachel coveted, stole and then lied, and in this brief account I believe this is what we are meant to see.
Again, we can wonder as time went on how Jacob reacted when, and if, he ever found out the truth of this matter, we can wonder about Rachel, and how the Lord may have worked in her heart about what she did, but as much of the Scripture says, we are to make these accounts personal, applying them to ourselves and what we have done in the past that relates to that account.
The sin of covetousness has always been among men, somebody has something you want, and if at all possible most will find a way to either take it from them, or obtain something similar for themselves, which leads us to stealing at times. But it is the lying of those occurrences, most generally to ourselves, that we must encounter here today in this short letter, for we all lie. “But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ.” (Eph. 4:15)
Those who will not confess Christ before others, He will not profess before His Father, (Matt. 10:33) and here is the epitome of lying, those who call themselves Christians, but do not speak of Him whom they call themselves after. They have coveted, and perhaps in the proper manner at the beginning, the “finer attributes” of Christ, but as Rachel did, what they wanted they cannot share, for if others knew, they would be found as liars, deceiving above all themselves. That is the problem with stealing something and then trying to hide it, you cannot share what you inappropriately now own, for if others were to find out, you would be known as a thief.
“Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat.” (Matt. 7:13) “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.” (John 10:1)
Those who know Jesus Christ as Lord find it impossible to keep Him to themselves, at times they may be like Jeremiah, “Then I said, I will not make mention of him, nor speak any more in his name. But his word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with forbearing, and I could not stay.” (Jer. 20:9) At times the frustration level may be almost too much to bear, watching tens of thousands each day rushing toward eternal darkness, but those times do not last long, for what they have freely received, they freely offer to others.
Not so with those who play the dangerous game of religion, they have no personal relationship with the Lord, but instead are attempting to steal their way into the kingdom through works, vain repetitions, and a “well lived” life. “But if ye will not do so, behold, ye have sinned against the LORD: and be sure your sin will find you out.” (Numb. 32:23)
Something happened to Rachel, we don’t know what that was, but those who follow the Lord are not allowed to live in sin for long, we must either repent of it, (1 John 1:9) or there will be chastisement, there is no other option. We are to be holy, and to be holy in part means to deny ourselves that which we covet, that which does not belong to us. “But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.” (Phil. 4:19) We will always have needs, right up until the day we die, our responsibility is to be able to discern between what is a need, and what is a want. “But covet earnestly the best gifts: and yet shew I unto you a more excellent way.” (1 Cor. 12:31)
