Hedging Your Bets

Sept. 16

Read: Gen. 31:17-35, Zch. 10:2

Hedging Your Bets

“For the household gods utter nonsense,

and the diviners see lies;

they tell false dreams

and give empty consolation.

Therefore the people wander like sheep;

they are afflicted for lack of a shepherd.”

(Zch. 10:2)

In the Old Testament, we have a handful of times that we read about a certain sort of idol called a “household gods”. One particular story is that which we read today involving Jacob, Rachel, and Laban. When Jacob fled his father in-law’s home and left to return to his family his wife (Rachel) decides to steal her family’s household gods and bring them with her as they flee. Laban, her father, gets mad and pursues them in anger. His words and actions once he catches them show that what he is actually more concerned about retrieving these “gods” than he is seeing his daughter and grandchildren off. The question is, why? What were these “household gods”?

As we have looked at idols the last couple days, we have come to realize that idols have the capacity to link us to the spiritual world and the lesser / rebellious gods who are not aligned with Christ. They are a tool which connects the worshipper with the worshipped. Rachel steals these “household gods” presumably because she is hedging her bets in a way. The best guess is that she seemed doubtful as to whether or not The God of Jacob (YHWH / God Most High) can actually protect her and sustain her. Her plan? Take these gods that had been protecting me and my family before I met Jacob. She could see what sort of life her dad had (successful, rich, full) and she thought, “why not bring these gods with us just in case… lets add them to the mix in case this YHWH God needs a little help or doesn’t pan out.”

This is a common way of thinking even today. How often do we try to “add something “ to the mix to hedge our bets with the Lord. It is not an outright rejection of God but rather a subtle “diluting” of our attention and worship. We think these “tokens” have some extra power they might add to the mix if God doesn’t show up. We have forgotten that God Most High is the source of ALL POWER and the CREATOR OF ALL THINGS. Even what little and limited power these rebellious characters have is only allowed by God himself. (Take a look at Job 1 and 2, notice how Satan has his boundaries set by God.) They use what influence they have to distract, mislead, and deceive the humans worshipping them… pretending to be the source when they are not. In truth these lesser gods are simply poor stewards and corruptors of what God has entrusted to them. They will one day be held accountable and punishment for their rebellion. Thinking back to yesterday, money serves as a great example.

It is quite easy to look at money and think it has some power of its own… and that having some of it hedges your bets just in case God “doesn’t pull through” or “show up”. It is easy to be tricked into thinking that money has a power of its own… it could be seen as a common “household god”… something one could be tempted to “add to the mix” and syphon a little bit of attention and worship off God and towards that money. Looking at Jacob, there is a great example of this truth. Both Laban and Jacob had livestock, but the health, vitality, and multitude of these animals changed drastically between the two. God Most High blessed Jacob in a very different way than he did Laban. Laban’s household gods may have covered him before Jacob ever showed up… but once YHWH arrives on the seen the difference is clear. Just like money, both Jacob and Laban received livestock… but one flock became a source of fullness and provision and the other a source of discouragement and heartache… a “sickly flock”. The fruit of worshipping God is will be wealthy and full… the fruit of worshipping anyone else will eventually prove sickly and draining.

Who are we worshiping today? Are we guilty of “adding to” God Most High (YHWH) and attempting to “hide under our saddle” (like Rachel) some other “household gods” thinking maybe they have something to offer that God doesn’t have or won’t give us? Where do we think our proverbial “flock’ comes from (think of Laban’s vs. Jacob’s)… and is it healthy and strong or sickly and waining? There is no god like OUR GOD. There is none like God Most High. Ask the Lord to open your eyes to your own “household gods” if you have any. God alone is enough. God doesn’t need any “back up”. Don’t be deceived… trust him alone. He is enough for your journey. God has your back. Like Rachel, we will be faced with many “journeys” into the unknown… can we trust God is enough for us? Our are we going to be tempted to “steal the household gods” of another just in case. This is how idol worship works. Love you guys. - JDP