Jesus Christ is presented as superior to Jacob in his giving and his love. While Jacob gave a well that provided temporary refreshment, Jesus offers "living water" that springs up into everlasting life, a gift freely given through his sacrifice. Jacob's love for Rachel, though intense, was marked by deception and division, whereas Christ's love for the church is perfect and unwavering, demonstrated by his ultimate sacrifice to save and keep his bride eternally. Furthermore, Jacob, despite being a diligent shepherd, could not ultimately keep all his sheep, but Jesus, the Good Shepherd, guarantees eternal life to those who believe in him, ensuring none are lost from his hand.
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Our subject tonight is, from the text, art thou greater than our Father Jacob. Our subject is greater than Jacob. Tomorrow night, greater than Moses. Lord willing. And on Thursday, greater than Solomon. And on Friday, greater than Jonah. Jonah. The superiority of our Lord and Savior Jesus. Jesus Christ. Now in the morning we are taking an alternative series. We're making a survey of the New Testament, taking a number of books each morning.
We invite you if you enjoy the service tonight, if you're able to come and join us in our morning stuff. Now shall we begin to read tonight please in John's Gospel Chapter Four. John's Gospel, please. And the fourth chapter. Let us read from verse ten.
John four, verse ten. Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee give me to drink, thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water. The woman said unto him, Sir, thou hast nothing to draw this. Down the well is deep. For whence then hast thou that living water? Are thou greater than our father Jacob? which gave us the well, and drank thereof himself and his children and his cattle. Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again.
But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst. But the water that I shall give him shall be in him, a well of water springing up into everlasting life. The woman said unto him, Sir, give me this water, but I thirst not. Neither come hither to drink. May the Lord bless you with his precious word. Are thou greater than our Father Jacob? These words were spoken by a Samaritan woman, a sinful woman, a woman who I am sure was despised equally.
by the Jews and those of our own race, the Samaritans. The Jews despised her, I am sure. They had no dealings with Samaritans. And twelve men had just recently passed her on the road. With never a glance, I am sure. For they were the favoured children of Israel. I was almost going to say the spoiled children of the universe. But they were the favored children of Israel and had no dealings with the narrative.
And I'm sure that those of our own race despised her. For she was a woman of a loose life. She had tried to find satisfaction in life with six different males. Five that she had been married to. And one that she was presently living with, with whom she was not married. She had found life a frustration. And those six men are disappointed. But she was destined that day to meet the seven. And as the word seven denotes completeness, she was going to find completeness that day.
so that she would never seek another. She said, come see a man who told me all things that ever I did. Is not this the Christ? She found perfection, fulfilled and happened in the seventh man, Jesus Christ our Lord. Mind you, she was greatly surprised. When this man sitting on the well and utterly spent, but evidently a Jew, said to her, give me a drink. She said, how is it that you being a Jew would ask a drink of mate?
Who am I woman of Samaria? The Jews have no dealings with Samaritan. She had come to Jacob's well, as it was called, to draw water at such an hour when others were not there. That well we read in this chapter had been a father's gift to a son. The piece of ground in which the well was had been the gift of Jacob to his son Joseph. But the well was simply called Jacob's well. And for a thousand years A thousand people had come a thousand times to that well, and apparently had never been disappointed.
It hadn't failed them. The well was deep. Hand over hand they had let down their buckets, and hand over hand they had lifted them again, and had found satisfaction and cleansing and refreshment in the waters of Jacob's well. But she was surprised when the stranger said, Give me a drink. And more surprised still when he said, If you knew the gift of God and he it is who is speaking to you, you would have asked of him. And he would have given you living water.
And she got the living water that day. And went out to be a soul with her. I've always found it interesting to think of the letters F.W. in connection with the story. For this Samaritan woman met the Savior of the world at Psycho's Wells. He asked for some water and spoke to her about spiritual water, which she received. and went out in simple witness for Christ to her countrymen and became a sole winner for the matter.
So when you're thinking of S-doll, you think of that simple outline, that simple story. Now that well which Jacob gave as a gift to his son Joseph had been a blessing, I say, for a thousand years to a thousand people who had come a thousand times. One of the greatest gifts, the greatest gift that Jacob ever gave, Now Jacob was not noted for giving. As we think of Jacob, we think of a grasping man. A man who was out to get to not to give. To gain and not to give. But he gave a wonderful gift that day. When he gave that well.
For so many people for so long a time. Oh Jacob gave a magnificent gift. A magnificent gift. Later on in his life to his brother, his twin brother, Esau. But it was not a token of his affection. It was in the nature of a bribe to allay his own fears and to avoid his brother's anger. He said, I will appease him with the present that goes before me. And afterwards I shall see his face, if he accepts it.
And so he prepared his presence. It was a present and a presentation worthy of Jacob the schema. He says, I am going to prepare two hundred shears and twenty years. the he goats. Two hundred she goats and twenty he goats. And then he says, I am going to, after that, prepare two hundred ewes and twenty rams. And after that, thirty camels with their coat.
And after that, forty head of cattle and ten bulls. and twenty sheathens and therefore. And he prepared all that present, all those gifts for his brother. I will appease him, he said. Now the word appease in that passage is a usual word found seventy times in the Old Testament and translated atonement. I will make atonement with my brother. with my presence. And well he might feel his need of making atonement.
For he had deceived his brother and his aged father in his blindness. And had to leave home in a hurry. And was gone more than twenty years, probably closer to forty. And now he's on his way back home and he hears that his brother is coming against him with four hundred men. which could only mean to Jacob troubled. His brother had been nursing his wrath and keeping it hot for over twenty years. He was going to be avenged. There were four hundred men to back him up. And when Jacob heard that he was on his way to meet him, he got his present rest, his atonement rest.
And all those gifts must not come at one time. No. He says, what you'll do is you'll send the first gift to him. Two hundred he goes. Two hundred she goes. Twenty he goes. And then, when they come up to my brother, and he sees this magnificent gift, they'll say, my, what a gift. Who's it for? Oh, it's for my Lord Esau. from my servant. And just as getting over that surprise, it's two hundred years and twenty rends their brother.
What's this? Present from my Lord Esau, from my servant David. And just as it's getting over that surprise, gift number three, thirty carols, with their coats and another spice. And he's getting over that surprise. Gift number four, forty head of cattle and ten bulls. Zeke about it. And then another spice. And along come the she-assist and the folk.
I will make atonement with the present that goes before me, a magnificent gift. None of affection, but a bride. And then, and then, when Esau was getting over that, I'm sure he only uttered one word in the Hebrew language, wow, had that gift. And then, presently, the women begin to arrive. The four wives of Jacob, each with her children, guaranteed to melt a heart of stub. The last of the women, the beloved wife of Jacob.
Rachel. And behind them, behind the women's skirts, that I'm going to say, Jacob himself, prostrating himself seven times on the ground, thy servant Jacob, before my Lord is not. What a gift. But you know, Jacob found to his surprise that his gift wasn't made it. It wasn't made it. Here's Esau running to him. Not with a spear to thrust him through. No.
Not with a sword to cut off his head. But running to him and throwing his arms around him and kissing him. identical language found in the New Testament of the prodigal son's father as he runs to the prodigal identical language. He ran and fell on his neck and kissed him. Esau hadn't started out that way. He had started out nursing his wrath. But God had spoken to him. God had stopped him. God had changed him. Jacob's presence wasn't needed after all.
This giving, as far as that gift was concerned, was all in vain. It wasn't a great discovery when you folks found out that your little present wasn't necessary either, wasn't it? When you discovered all your scheming and all your atonement making to get the favor of God was unnecessary. But the fair was all paid. Was not a great thing when you discovered it? If you really think it was, say amen, will you? Amen. Very feeble, amen. Really, it's a great discovery, dear friend. It's for free. My wife and I were coming home from New Zealand.
We were dead tired. We're invited to stay a week in Honolulu. We only stayed two days and spent most of the time in bed. We'd had to hurt her. But anyway, when the day came for us to go home, we wanted to go down to Alamoana shopping center and find some gift for our children. It was a very, very hot day, I remember. And we asked where the bus was. would take us down to that great shopping center. And we waited and waited up the street corner. It was getting hotter and hotter. And no bus appeared. So we said to somebody, is this where you get the bus for Alabama?
No, no. You've got to get down three blocks. So we walked three blocks in the hot zone. And we stood on the corner and we waited and waited and waited and no bus. So we said to somebody else, is this where you get the bus for their shopping? Oh, no, no. Walk up two blocks up that way. So we walked up two blocks that way, in the hot sun. And we waited and waited and no bus appeared. So we asked somebody else. He said, oh, no, it's across the street. And I think that was where we started out. And while we're waiting for the bus, we made the acquaintance of a Jew and his wife from New York, or New York. And we chatted with them for a while. And... I got so hot. I must have been tired because I hailed a taxi cab.
And I said, well, you take us down to El Mouanda shopping center. He said, yes. Well, I said to our Jewish friends, come on in, we'll give you a ride. He said, oh, we'll be glad to pay our share. Oh, I said, no, it's all. Be my guest. So they got in very much surprise. I wanted him to go back to New York and say, yes, we had a wonderful trip. But do you know what was the highlight of that for us? We were invited by a Scutman and a Christian minister at that to ride in his taxi cab free. And his friends would say, no. And he would say, yes, it was all for free. Wasn't that a great discovery when you found out that God didn't need your little present.
You had a little payment to make atonement. It had been all paid. by Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen? It's a great discovery, dear friend. To say nothing in my hands, I bring similar to the cross. Now, Jesus Christ purchased a well of water springing up into everlasting life. And millions of people have come for millions of days. and have come through that fountain and have never been disappointed. And before John closes the canon of Scripture, the Spirit of God says, Write two things about the water of life.
He says, I will give to him that suffers of the water of life freely. And then he says, write this, Whosoever will let him take the water of life freely. The word freely occurs at the beginning of the Bible. God invited man to freely. But the woman left out the word freely, and the word was left out for centuries and centuries. And it was taught that you had to pay something to get God's favor. But ere the canon of Scripture is completed, God says, put that word in again, will you, John? Whosoever will let him take the one way free.
Why? Because Jesus Christ purchased. in the ruby coin of his precious blood. And all we have to do is to partake of it freely. Jesus is greater, first of all, in his giving. In his giving. Greater than Jacob. But then I want you to take you to number two. Jesus is greater than Jacob in his loving. Jacob is Jesus is greater than Jacob in his loving. Now just as we don't associate giving with Jacob, we're so used to his scheming, we're so used to his grasping, that we don't appreciate his giving, the greatest of all gifts when he gave that well.
So we do not appreciate Jacob in his loving. Do you know that to my mind Jacob is the greatest lover of the Old Testament? Not Solomon, to be sure. Solomon wasn't a real lover at all. The man who loved so many strange wives, says the Bible, was no lover. But Jacob was a great lover. Would you like to turn to... Book of Genesis, please. And we'll turn to... About chapter thirty-one. Oh, there are about... Now, chapter twenty-nine, please.
Genesis twenty-nine. And verse eighteen. And Jacob loved Rachel and said, I'll serve thee seven years for Rachel, thy younger daughter. And Laban said, It is better that I give her to thee than I should give her to another. another man, abide with me. And Jacob served seven years for Rachel, and it seemed unto him but a few days for the love he had to her.
I think that's tremendous. Seven years, night and day as we shall discover, night and day. In the heat by day, on the drought by night, seven days old, for seven long years, Jacob served to win his bride. And the Bible says that the seven years were but a few days for the love that he had. It's a ritual. There's a lover for you.
There's a lady who had a birthday today. Very nice lady too. I wonder if her husband could say, I worked for her for seven years. And those seven years were but a few days for the love I had for her. I wonder if I could say that about my wife. Could you say that about her? Or is it not rather true that those last seven days when I was waiting for her were seven years? I wonder. Here's a great lover. Seven years.
And in love. But a few. Mind you, he was to be deceived by the crafty laban. For when they were making marriage in the pre-marriage festivities, the crafty laban took advantage of the darkness, perhaps even the dissipation, who knows? Oh, Jacob. And substituted in the darkness, Leah, the elder, for Rachel, the younger. And Jacob found himself not with the beloved rich man, but with Leah, the elder, the firstborn.
Are you sorry for Jacob? Don't be too sorry. Many, many years before, he did not. You see, when he expostulated Laban said, it's not the custom of the country. to give the younger before the elder. You must recognize the rights of the firstborn, Jacob. You must recognize the rights of the firstborn. And take Leah. And years before, Jacob had not recognized the rights of the firstborn in respect of Esau. But took advantage of his father's darkness, who was blind to deceive him.
He wasn't going to recognize the rights of the first one. He was going to have that birthright with the aid of his mother, supposed brother, should suffer for that. You know, the wheels of God grind exceeding slow, but the grind exceeding small. And now he who had deceived his father so many, many years before, taking advantage of his darkness. Now somebody will take advantage of the darkness. And Jacob will find himself not with the beloved Rachel, but with the hated Leah. And the word hated is actually used in respect of Leah. Of course, I think we're to understand the word hated there comparatively, as it's used comparatively by the Lord Jesus.
When he says, if any man come after me and hate not, his closest relative is not worthy of me. Terms which define the emotions are comparative. And the love for Christ is to be such that all other emotions are as hate. Didn't compare. But it actually says that when God saw that Leah was hated, what did he do? He gave Leah six sons, six wrapping sons, the hated Leah. While as yet the beloved Rachel had none. Jacob set his heart on Rachel, not on Leah.
And aren't you sorry for Leah? I am. Oh, she's very handy. She's a wonderful servant. But she's not beloved. And under the same roof there lived the beloved Rachel and the loved Lord in Leah. God will open the womb of Leah and give her six hands. And Rachel will have knelt for many and many a day. She Jacob was a great lover. But under his own roof at one and the same time is the beloved and the hated.
But you know, when you come to the New Testament, There's only one person I know in the New Testament of whom it says that he loved his wife. I said to my wife this evening, tell me somebody in the New Testament outside of our Lord. Tell me some individual of whom it has said that he loved his wife. And she couldn't think of any. And neither could I. There's only one lover in the New Testament. of whom it has said that he loved his bride, and that Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen? That's right. And she can rest in the knowledge that she is but one. Christ loved the church and gave himself for it. I sometimes, dear friends, in my own mind, think of that first lover. who undoubtedly was Adam. It doesn't say that he loved his bride, but he must have. Think of a man opening his eyes and seeing such a beautiful creature, right by his side. But it wasn't that very long before at separate ends of the garden, I'm sure, Satan intervened and spoke to the woman who did not in the language of Colossians hold her head, giving Adam his place.
But took upon herself to reply to the tempter, and in doing so, added to the word of God, took away from the word of God, and weakened the word of God. And so she was the same. Now the Bible says distinctly Adam was not the same. But it says the woman being the same wasn't the transgression. Adam wasn't the same. Why then did he join her in her disobedience? I wonder if it wasn't like this.
Why just hold it out? But Adam said, I love my bride. I must be wherever she is. I'll step down to where she is in her disobedience. I'll never be able to lift her out of it. I'll step down with her into it. And he did. I want to be associated with her wherever she is. If it means stepping down without the possibility of ever lifting her up to my innocent state. I'll do so. If that's true, he's in contrast to the last Adam.
Who stepped down to where his bride was in her youth. Not to be with her and stay in it, but to lift her out of it. Blessed be his name. That she might be with him forever and ever. With him and like him. forever now. I wonder. Oh, Jacob was a lover. But he wasn't a lover. Like the eternal lover of our soul. Jesus Christ our life. Jesus is greater than Jacob in his giving and in his loving.
Then I want you to turn please to another sister. Let's turn to chapter thirty-two. Chapter thirty-one, rather. Chapter thirty-one. Verse thirty-six. And Jacob was wroth and chilled with Laban. And Jacob answered and said to Laban, What is my trespass? What is my sin? That thou hast so hotly pursued it. For as thou hast searched all my stuff, what hast thou found?
Of all thy household stuff. Set it here before my brethren. And my brethren that they may judge. And thy brethren that they may judge the tricks of them. And of this twenty years have I been with thee. Thy use and thy she go. have not cast their young. And the rams of thy flock have I not eaten. That which was torn of beasts I brought not unto thee. I bear the loss of it. Of my hand which thou require it. Whether stolen by day or stolen by night, thus I was. In the day the drought comes and the frost by night, and my sleep departed from my night.
Thus have I been twenty years. in my house. I serve thee fourteen years, fourteen years for thy two daughters, and six years for thy cattle. And thou hast changed my wages ten times. Except the God of my father, the God of Abraham, and the field, I think, had been with me. Surely thou sent me away, now empty. God has seen my affliction. And the labor of my hands, and rebuked me yesterday, This leads me to say, dear friend, thirdly, that Jacob is the great keeper of the Old Testament.
He's the great shepherd of the Old Testament. As we think of shepherds, we think of Moses or Jesse or David. But to my mind, none of those come up to Jacob as a shepherd. He gave his life for the sheep, not that he died, but gave twenty years of the best of his life for his flock. Push with more than databases. Want you to think of that shepherd. Day and night, seven days a week, that shepherd watched over his flock.
Can you see him lying there on a cold night in the field? Nothing but his club around him. And suddenly there's a scream of fear from the sheep. And the snarl of a wolf and Jacob rises stiff and sore. And he seizes his staff and he rushes to the defense of the sheep. And sometimes to his dismay, some sheep are lying dead. He couldn't save them. Thrive. But he wasn't successful.
He said to his father-in-law, that which is torn of beasts, I bear the loss. He was a good shepherd. But he couldn't keep all his sheep. He had to confess with all his care. Nice and nice. He wasn't able to keep all his sheep all of the time. He lost some. And the crafty laden said, you'll pay for it. I'll take it out of your weight. And he did it for twenty years. There's a shepherd for you. Jacob said to Laban, you changed my wages ten times, and they weren't raised as I assure you.
No. But with all his care, he couldn't say, I give unto my sheep life, and they shall never perish. Neither shall any man or beast pluck them out of my head. He couldn't say that. He uses the word my hand, my hand. Did you notice that twice? My hand. Of my hand thou didst require it. But the sheep got out of his head and they perished. A good shepherd, mind you. Great in his garden day and night. Great in his garden. But failing in his keeping for every one of the sheep.
And what does the New Testament say? Aren't you glad? And I give unto my sheep eternal life, and they shall never perish. Neither shall any man pluck them. What's the rest? Out of my hand. Out of my hand. I give them eternal life. They shall never perish. It is Father now I come unto thee. And of those whom thou has given me, none of them is lost. Jesus never needs to say, I bore the load. I'll tell you what he did say. I bore the load.
But he never said, I bore the load. He said, I bore the load of their sins before I saved them. And I bore the load of the sheep after I saved them. He bore the load of our sins before he saved us when he died for us in a place called Cal. The good shepherd gave his life for the sheep. But the Bible says after he finds the sheep, what does he do? He lays it on his shoulders. Isaiah says the government of the world shall be on his shoulder. One shoulder. The government of the world on his shoulder. But when it comes to saving the sheep, he lays it on his shoulders.
Rejoicing, two shoulders. And he never lets it go. Until he cometh home. Until he comes home. He left in ninety-nine in the wilderness. But when he found the one, he took it all the way home. And said, Rejoice with me, for I have found the sheep that was lost. It's a great thing to discover, dear. Now when Jesus Christ saves you, he never lets you go until he takes you home. Amen? Aren't you glad? You should let. Never perish. Neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. There are some folks that truly love the Lord.
They believe in his precious blood. They have made you ashamed sometimes. They love they have for grace. But the dear folks believe that after they're saved, the shepherd puts them down in their four feet. They have four little feet. And he says, you better follow me home to heaven. And if you fall by the wayside again, it's just too bad. You're on your own. No. No. When he finds it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he comes home, he says, rejoice with me.
I found the sheep that I had lost. Likewise. I say unto you this joy, where? In the presence of the angels of God. Over once and I. I should let it. I love those five words, and they may do somebody good here tonight for the first time. Listen to this. For whom he did foreknow, then he did predestine to be conformed to the image of his son. And whom he did predestinate, then he called. That's when he called you by the gospel. And whom he called, then he justified.
That's the effectual call of the gospel. And all that believe are justified from all things from which you couldn't be justified by the law of Moses. You see? Whom he called, then he justified. And whom he justified then, he glorified. No hitch. No failure. He takes you all the way home. Amen. Now, if you must save man or woman here tonight, let me tell you something. Four of those five things have already happened. You're just waiting for this one. Four knowledge. Predestination. Not to a place so much as a purpose. Predestinated to be conformed to the image of the sun.
Called justified. If you're a believer, you're justified from all things. Therefore, being justified by faith, you're a piece of stuff. You've got the four of us. You're only waiting for the last one. And who he justifies then? He knows how. Takes right to glory. Blessed be. He bears the load. And he bears the sheep, the lamb himself. But he never loses any. Jacob is. Jacob is. A greater than Jacob is here.
Greater in him. Greater in his love. Greater in his God. Blessed you. We'll sing of the shepherd's mother. that died for the sake of the flock. His love to the utmost was tried, but firmly endured of the rock. When blood from a victim must flow, this shepherd in pity was led to stand between us and the fellow, and willingly died in us.
Of him then our song ever shall be, of the shepherd who gave himself. No subject so glorious, let's see. No theme so affecting to us. Let's join together in saying this. Thanks be unto God for His unspeakable death. Are you ready? Thanks be unto God for His unspeakable death. Let's make a better job than that, shall we? Thanks be unto God for His unspeakable death. Ana. Let's pray together as we separate.
Gracious God our Father, thank thee for thy holy word. Father Jacob was great, great in his giving, but he never had water of life such as we've got Father, he was great in his loving, but he was divided. Oh, we thank thee for the undivided love of Jesus Christ for his brother. We thank thee he stepped down to where we were, that he might lift us up to where he is. Blessed be his name.
And we thank thee, Father, that he'll never lose us. I'll never rest. Because he who has begun a good work in us will complete it in the day of Jesus Christ. Pass us with thy blessing. Always thankful for the love of God. For the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ. And for the communion of the Holy Ghost. Amen.