Genesis-106-Set your wages

God’s Words: Genesis 30:25- 33

 

“After Rachel gave birth to Joseph, Jacob said to Laban, “Send me on my way so I can go back to my own homeland. Give me my wives and children, for whom I have served you, and I will be on my way. You know how much work I’ve done for you.” But Laban said to him, “If I have found favor in your eyes, please stay. I have learned by divination that the Lord has blessed me because of you.” 28 He added, “Name your wages, and I will pay them.” Jacob said to him, “You know how I have worked for you and how your livestock has fared under my care. The little you had before I came has increased greatly, and the Lord has blessed you wherever I have been. But now, when may I do something for my own household?” “What shall I give you?” he asked. “Don’t give me anything,” Jacob replied. “But if you will do this one thing for me, I will go on tending your flocks and watching over them: 32 Let me go through all your flocks today and remove from them every speckled or spotted sheep, every dark-colored lamb and every spotted or speckled goat. They will be my wages. 33 And my honesty will testify for me in the future, whenever you check on the wages you have paid me. Any goat in my possession that is not speckled or spotted, or any lamb that is not dark-colored, will be considered stolen.”" Amen.

 

Jacob's Attempt to Return Home and Laban's Effort to Shake His Resolve

When God opened Rachel's womb and Joseph was born, Jacob made a momentous decision: to return to Canaan. The years he had spent until his eleven sons were born were a veritable quagmire. Yet, amidst the fierce rivalry between Rachel and Leah, and Jacob's struggles, God watched over and loved them. It was there that Jacob was learning about life, his faith, and his purpose. As soon as Joseph was born, it seems he remembered the promise God had made to him at Bethel. He thought, "Now I must return to Canaan." God had promised to give him the very land on which he had lain.

 

So he spoke to Laban, telling him it was time to go after nearly fourteen years. "I have worked for my wives and children. Now that it is all finished, please give them to me. I am going back to Canaan." This was a perfectly reasonable request, and to us, Jacob appears to be a good family head who made a decision of faith. Had he truly left then, he would likely have experienced God's promised hand in an even greater way.

 

Laban's Faith, Which Seeks to Use God

However, upon hearing this, Laban began to shake Jacob's resolve. Laban said, "I have learned that the Lord has blessed me because of you. If I have found favor in your sight, stay here." This meant, "Jacob, you know it, don't you? The reason I have become so rich is that God has bestowed favor upon me because of you. So stay with me."

 

The Korean word for "learned" in the Revised Version is translated as "learned by divination" in the New Korean Standard Version. The original Hebrew word has both meanings. Both translations are plausible. Laban appeared to serve God, but he secretly kept a small idol called a "teraphim" in his house, a kind of family guardian deity. He knew about the Lord God, but he also served the teraphim. Thus, the New Korean Standard Version assumes he used it for divination. However, the overall context shows Laban saying, "God has blessed me through you," thus using God for his own gain. To keep Jacob with him, he continually brings up God. He doesn't just say "God" but uses the specific name "Yahweh," which makes the translation "learned" also seem not incorrect.

 

Either interpretation is possible, but the important point is Laban's recognition: "That God has blessed me this way for your sake." He knows God and that he has become rich because of Jacob. He knows that God bestowed favor on him by looking upon Jacob. If that's the case, who should Laban try to please? He should obviously turn to God, but instead, he clings to Jacob. The reason is clear: while he may seem to know God, that God is Jacob's God, not Laban's. Furthermore, his reason for clinging to Jacob is not because God is behind him, but to increase his own wealth. His entire focus is on his possessions. He is trying to use God to hold on to Jacob's heart. This is a very typical form of foolish and false faith.

 

The Foolishness of Thinking Only of Oneself

Laban's actions reveal when we fall into a false faith. We can call on God, sing praises to Him, and even say we exalt Him. We can even worship. But we must examine ourselves to see if we are truly using God, or if we are calling on God for our own benefit, for a condition, a person like Jacob, or some personal gain.

 

The first part of Laban's statement is easy to understand, but the latter part, where he says, "If you are fond of me, stay here," is difficult. I've never seen a picture of Laban or even imagined him in a dream, but I believe he must have been a man with no beard, because I have never seen anyone so shameless. Jacob had to work for fourteen years and couldn't go home because of Laban, and he suffered greatly, as he later testifies. Even Laban's own daughters said, "Our father sold us and devoured all his property. So what's the use of staying with him?"

 

When does a person become so shameless? When they only think of themselves, their own profit, and forget everything else. In society, we often see people who create lies for their own gain and fill all their selfish desires while appearing to be completely honest. Yet, when you meet them personally, many of them don't think they are doing anything wrong. Throughout history, many wicked entrepreneurs and corrupt politicians have lived with the conviction that they were doing what was right. Laban is no different. He cannot see himself.

 

Even in less extreme cases, we are the same. If our wound is great, we cannot see others. If our greed is great, we cannot see others. If our desires come first, no one can persuade us otherwise. Don't we sometimes feel this way when we evangelize? "Do you want me to serve? To cook? Just come and sit down and eat!" yet they won't come. "What do I have to do if I believe in Jesus?" We tell them, "Just come to church and listen to one sermon," and they treat it like the end of the world. We were all like that, and we were dragged here by grace. We can sometimes lose sight of ourselves, asking, "Am I a person who is doing such a thing?" This is why we must reflect on ourselves.

 

Jacob's Sense of Injustice: Why Do I Have Nothing?

When Jacob heard this, he didn't just let it go. I would have said, "Stay? Are you crazy? I have to take my wives and children and go." But Jacob complained. "Father-in-law, you are rich now. And as you said, the reason you are rich is because of me. So what about me?" Jacob had nothing. He had absolutely nothing. He said, "What am I?"

 

At this moment, Jacob's true feelings began to surface. The sense of injustice that was in his heart, even as he was trying to make a fresh start in faith by returning to Canaan, came out. His true thoughts emerged. The kind of life he was living was revealed. "If God was with you and you became rich, and the reason for that was me, then what am I, having nothing?" He says he doesn't understand. What about you? Do you not understand? Laban is rich, and it's because of Jacob. So isn't it natural for Jacob to be angry and feel wronged, since he has nothing?

 

But if you think about it, it's funny. To whom should he have complained? To God. "God, you give blessings to the person next to me, so how can you not bless your beloved child?" Isn't this an obvious fact? Jacob did not know that he was already blessed. You can't see it either, can you? Because Jacob thought he had nothing, he couldn't see that he was blessed. Jacob was the same.

 

We often hear the saying, "Who believes in Jesus, and who receives the blessings?" This story comes from the famous pastor Kim Ik-du. He was a well-known gangster called the "Tiger of Anaksan." But after hearing a missionary's sermon, he became a pastor and a famous revivalist in the early Korean church. One day, on his way to a revival meeting, he was resting under a tree because of the heat. A drunk man came up to him, picked a fight, and started hitting him. Despite his strong build, he couldn't fight a drunk man. He took every punch and then asked, "Brother, are you done hitting me?" The man, thinking, "What is this? My punches are having no effect. What does he think of my fist?" tried to hit him more. That's when Pastor Kim Ik-du said his famous words: "Brother, I believed in Jesus, but you received the blessing." The man almost died. Pastor Kim Ik-du had been such a notorious man that people would run away from him. When he said, "I am Kim Ik-du," the man immediately fell to his knees and begged for forgiveness. The postscript says that Pastor Kim took him to the revival meeting.

 

A Faith Like a Practical Unbeliever

So, was Pastor Kim's statement really true? Do we believe in Jesus, but only the person next to us receives the blessings? No. Who was truly the most blessed person? Pastor Kim Ik-du. He was not only saved from a life of sin, but he also went to the point of showing kindness and love to the man who hit him. A thief helped others, a robber built up another's house, and a violent man took a beating and became an evangelist. So who received the greater blessing? Jacob or Laban?

 

Jacob knew that Laban was blessed because of God. He should have gone to God and said, "God, I will now follow you and your promise. Please be with me." It would have been natural for him to think, "If even the person next to me is blessed, what will happen if I, who believes in your promise, go forth?" Instead, though he had God's name on his lips, he didn't truly trust or remember God. This is what we call a "practical unbeliever." They say they believe, sing praises to God, and worship, but in practice, they are no different from unbelievers. At least unbelievers are honest, but we might have even forgotten that honesty.

 

Don't you think that the world is benefiting and being blessed because of you? God is showing favor to the world for your sake. It is not the world showing favor to you or looking after you. Money, possessions, fame, position, life experiences, or even health do not protect you. I am truly afraid that you might start to think that the world is working out as you want it to, because you are financially secure and your worries have decreased. You might think you're benefiting the world, while saying, "I thank God" and "God did it." But what is your heart truly seeking? Wasn't Jacob like that? He had God on his lips, but he was shaken by a single word from Laban. And aren't we, in our own way, thinking, "Why do I have nothing? Why don't I have the blessings everyone else has? Even Laban got rich because of me, so why am I left with nothing?"

 

Is It Wages, or a Reward?

Among Laban's strange words, there was one that pierced the core: "Set your own wages." This is a truly frightening statement because to answer it is to declare what you desire in your heart. It's not, "I'll give you this much, so you work." It's, "You set your own wages, and I will give it." How would you respond? What is the first thing that comes to your mind? What is the thought in your heart? What do you truly want? In a way, Laban's words should have truly pierced Jacob, but he did not receive them that way.

 

The word "wages" is a payment for the work you've done. But isn't he telling you to set your own wages? When is work ever easy? You could work a little and receive a lot. But do you remember that this word for "wages" is also related to the name of Jacob's son, Issachar? The word "sakar" in Issachar is the word for "wages." Why was he named that way? Because Leah thought God had rewarded her after she had a son through her maidservant and then had a son herself. She sacrificed her wealth, and God rewarded her for it. So Issachar is also translated as "reward."

 

This word also has an incredible meaning related to Abraham. God said to Abraham, "Do not be afraid, I am your shield, your very great reward." The same word is used. It can be "wages," "recompense," or "reward." For Jacob, "wages" was simply the money he earned, his property, his compensation for his work.

 

Because this was "wages," Laban could change it ten times. It's an interesting story. Jacob proposes to Laban, "If you give me wages, let's do this: The sheep and goats are usually white. Among them, give me the speckled, spotted, and dark ones. Those will be my portion." This ratio was probably close to 9 to 1. Since those colors were rare, Laban was a shrewd merchant who accepted this ambiguous contract. He said, "I will now separate all the speckled, spotted, and black ones. And you, take only the white ones and go tend them three days' journey away. That way, they won't mate here and produce more. You can have whatever is born from that flock." Laban was trying to take several times the profit.

 

Jacob took the white flocks and peeled branches from poplar, almond, and plane trees to make them striped. He placed them by the watering troughs where the flocks mated. And from the white goats and sheep, speckled offspring were born. Does this make sense? Please, don't try to explain it scientifically.

 

Jacob’s Vain Attempt and God’s Grace

What Jacob is doing is similar to the story of the mandrakes. Did the mandrakes really help women conceive? No. But Jacob did it anyway. He tried what people believed or what may have been a superstition at the time, thinking, "This will work."

 

But the offspring were born anyway. It was amazing. Black and speckled offspring came from white sheep. Their number increased. The Bible only mentions it once, but Laban changing the wages ten times means that even when Laban changed the conditions, Jacob's wealth continued to increase.

 

Was this Jacob's doing? No, no, no. The Bible clearly tells us not to be deceived, lest we think, "Hey, we can do something like that too," or lest someone in a rural village hears this sermon and says, "Let's try to make some speckled sheep at our house too." Jacob himself says, "God has taken away the livestock of your father and given them to me." God appeared to him in a dream and said, "Jacob! Lift up your eyes and see that all the male goats mating with the flock are striped, speckled, and spotted." God had promised to give them to him. This was a miracle, not something Jacob had achieved. Strictly speaking, Jacob's actions were a "vain effort." But to put it in a good way, he tried to find a method on his own. He still didn't realize that he was blessed because God was with him. Perhaps at first, he thought, "This is working; offspring are being born this way." But after the method changed ten times and his wealth continued to increase, he began to realize, "Ah, this was what God promised, and it was not my way that made it happen."

 

A Life Chasing True Value

Jacob became very wealthy, but it wasn't because of Laban or his own skill. We are the same. Even when we walk with God, we think, "This is because of a person's help," or "I got a good opportunity," or "I was lucky," or "I was well-prepared, so it worked out." Some people even say it's "destiny." Why is it so difficult for us to genuinely say that God did all of this?

 

Jacob wanted to go to Canaan, but he couldn't see the way forward. He saw only the great promise of God, and nothing else. If he had just lifted his head, he would have seen the house God was building for him, but he was still just looking at the sign of the promise. He couldn't lift his eyes to see the house God was building. Instead, he saw the materials to build a house right in front of him and grabbed them. His eyes should have been looking at the kingdom of God, but instead, they saw the signpost of God's promise, which he followed, but to which he attached no great importance.

 

I am truly afraid that God's word will become like this for us. How much of God's word have we heard, read, and told others? Even if you think you don't read the Bible much, you may recall a verse you read a long time ago. But even the word we know often becomes nothing more than a meaningless signpost. The word clearly shows the path we should take and clearly tells us that walking that path is God's delight, but we either intentionally ignore it, or we don't realize it, or we have forgotten it.

 

Grigori Perelman, the famous Russian mathematician, solved the Poincaré Conjecture, one of the seven Millennium Prize Problems, and refused the one million dollar prize. When asked why he gave up his professorship and research position to live in the mountains, he famously said, "I am now pursuing the secrets of the universe; how can I chase a million dollars?" Even a worldly person, if they feel what they are pursuing has the highest value, will give up the biggest things we can imagine. They treat them like straw.

 

But here we are, pursuing God's kingdom, the immeasurable God, His amazing glory, and His reward. Why do we so often look back and sideways, and grab at the first little temptation that comes along? Is wages really that good?

 

What Will You Live For?

My beloved, what can wages ultimately give us? Wages are just compensation for the work we have done. They lead to comparison, envy, jealousy, and greed. They will constantly make us compare: "Who received more? Who has more? Who gets better recognition in this world?"

 

But what about God's reward? A reward is a promise that God Himself will be our reward, even when we don't deserve anything. If we pursue the reward, what will come from us? Not envy and jealousy, but Jesus Christ. Because Christ Himself is our reward.

 

If we confess, "I am not a person who lives for wages, but a person who lives for God, who is my reward," then I must ask you today: What is your reward, your Jesus, that you are storing up in heaven today? Are you sowing the seeds of Jesus Christ in your every word, in your every glance, in your heart, and in every small act of kindness? Or are you living to earn wages? Are you cultivating the stems, growing the leaves, and bearing the fruit of Christ? Where is your patience, joy, hope, and kindness that you are storing up in heaven today? Are you living as one who has already received them, as God's reward? Or are you still clinging to your wages, clutching your own possessions day by day?

 

I ask you again, my beloved, will you live your life today for wages, or for God, who is your reward?

 

Let Us Pray

Loving Lord, what will we live for? What am I living for? We have come to know the cross, the love of Jesus, and His grace, but the words "I will give you wages" still sound so sweet to our ears.

 

Please have mercy on us, Lord. Do not let these wages before our eyes shake us. Help us to look directly at Your promise and at the God who fulfills it. Let us think only of You, who are our reward.

 

In the name of Jesus Christ, we pray. Amen.