God will Eventually Take Away our Natural Choice so that Christ may be Brought Forth

At the end of Genesis 35 we see one of the most touching stories in the entire Old Testament: Jacob journeys on from Bethel to Hebron, and on the way Rachel enters into labor and brings forth Benjamin (whom she calls Ben-Oni), and then she dies in labor.

Rachel is Jacob’s beloved wife; he fell in love with her at first sight, he kissed her and then started crying; when he met her father, he worked fourteen years to get her as his wife. Rachel was Jacob’s natural choice, the apple of his eye, his beloved wife, and their son Joseph was special in Jacob’s eyes.

When Esau was coming with an army to meet him, Jacob divided his possessions into two camps, keeping Rachel with him in the latter camp, hoping that if Esau would not spare the life of the first camp (where Leah, his other wife, was), he would at least spare his and Rachel’s life.

God allowed Jacob to have Rachel, and he loved her. However, at one point in Jacob’s life he had to lose Rachel so that he may gain a son. This is a very deep experience for Jacob; it was a personal dealing for him.

However, Jacob was not bitter with God, he didn’t argue with Him, and he didn’t make a big case out of this; he simply buried Rachel in the place that she died, raised a pillar, and journeyed on to Hebron.

At this point in Jacob’s life he was dealt with, broken, transformed, and built up by God and with God, and he realized that he needs to lose his natural choice so that he may gain Benjamin. What a touching story!

In our Christian life and pursuit today God may allow us to have our natural choice for a while, but then He will take it away so that He may bring forth Christ in us.

God is not cruel, taking away what we treasure most just so that He would make us suffer. God loves us, and His purpose is that Christ would be brought forth through us.

Benjamin is a type of Christ as the son of sorrow (Ben-Oni) and the son of God’s right hand (Benjamin). God wants Christ to be brought forth through us, and for this we will suffer the loss of our natural choice. However, God Himself will supply us to go through this and be more than overcomers.

We don’t have to worry what will we do when “our Rachel will be taken away”; we simply need to go on with the Lord, enjoy Him, experience Him, and let Him deal with us, break us, transform us, and build us up, and He will take care of everything.

God will supply us in our walk and experience of Him, and in Him we will move on, overcome, and bring forth Christ for God’s expression!

God Will Eventually Take Away our Natural Choice so that We May Bring forth Christ for His Expression

God will eventually take away our natural choice so that we may bring forth Christ for His expression.

The story in Genesis 35:16-20 is very touching, and many of us would think, How could Jacob go through all this and then suffer the loss of his beloved Rachel? Why would God do such a thing to him?

In our “good Christian concept” we may want to keep both the mother and the son, and we may think that we should fast and pray that God would not let Rachel die. But according to the divine economy, in order for Christ to be brought forth, our natural choice has to be put to death.

Without loss there can be no gain, and without death Christ cannot be brought forth.

To Jacob, Rachel was the love of his life, yet he watched her die in hard labor giving birth to their second son. However, as evidence of his transformation being accomplished and his getting ready to enter the process of maturity, there was no sign of him being offended with God, no protest, no anger, no self-pity, and no accusation brought to God when Rachel died giving birth to Benjamin.

Jacob didn’t transfer any natural feelings to the boy; he rose above any natural human feelings, transcended them, and expressed the divine thought and view in that situation. The birth of Benjamin and the death of Rachel occurred simultaneously; this means that Jacob gained a son by losing Rachel.

The death of Rachel, the loss of Jacob’s natural choice, was a deep and personal dealing for Jacob; this was not for breaking him but for deepening his experience of God for a further transformation and maturation.

Just like Jacob, we may lose our natural choice and preference, but we will gain Christ. God will eventually take away our natural choice so that we may bring forth Christ for His expression. He will do this. He will allow deep loss in our life so that Christ may be brought forth from within us.

God’s intention is to bring forth Christ through us, and for this He is working Himself into us day by day, and at one point He will break through our natural choice and bring forth Christ through us.

God allows us to have our natural choice, but not in our way and in our time; He wants to use everything, including our natural choice and preference, so that He may bring forth Christ through us.

God is not cruel, wanting us to suffer; He wants to work Christ into us, cause us to experience Christ, and bring forth Christ through us. God’s goal is not for us to suffer loss; He wants us to bring forth Christ through us, and for this we will suffer the loss of all things for the sake of Christ, and Christ will be more than enough to us (Phil. 3:7-8).

God wants to gain some who do not hinder Him in working through them, some who are open vessels and do not limit Him. God wants Christ to be brought forth in many brothers and sisters.

Lord, may Christ be brought forth in us! Give us the experiences we need that Christ may be expressed and brought forth. Lord, take us on with You. We want to enjoy You, experience You, and be dealt with, transformed, and built up by You in the Body of Christ. Oh Lord, may You become more precious to us than our personal preference and choice. May we be the open vessels You desire to have, those who do not hinder You or limit You but allow Christ to be brought forth for God’s expression. Strengthen us into our inner man to pay the price for Christ to be brought forth!

Christ is the Son of Sorrow and the Son of the Right Hand

Christ was incarnated to be Ben-oni, the man of sorrows, but in His resurrection He became Benjamin, the Son of the right hand in glory and honor. (Witness Lee, Life-Study of Genesis)

As Rachel was dying, she named her son Ben-Oni (the son of my sorrow); but Jacob called him Benjamin (the son of my right hand) – see Gen. 35:18.

Benjamin had two names, one given by the mother (Ben-Oni) and one given by the father (Benjamin). Rachel called him Ben-Oni because she was suffering and was in sorrow, but Jacob uttered the divine thought when he called him Benjamin, the son of my right hand.

Benjamin is a type of Christ, the One who is the real son of sorrow and affliction, and at the same time, He is the son of God’s right hand.

As the son of affliction, Benjamin typifies Christ who, as the Man of sorrows in His incarnation and human life on earth, accomplished God’s eternal redemption for His full salvation.

In Isa. 53 we see a picture of Christ who is the son of sorrow, the son of affliction; He suffered much when He was on earth, being criticised, persecuted, ridiculed, and rejected by His own people. He was evil spoken of, rejected, and even hated by some of His people, even though He brought good news, healed the sick, cast out demons, and spoke of God’s kingdom.

Eventually, Christ as the Son of sorrows and affliction was put to death unrighteously by His people, and He was counted among the criminals by those whom He came to serve.

However, as the Son of God’s right hand, Christ was resurrected victoriously, was ascended, and now ministers in the heavens to carry out the application of God’s redemption for His salvation (Heb. 8:1-2; 7:25).

Now Christ is in the heavens in resurrection and ascension, exalted at the right hand of God (Acts 2:33), sitting at the right hand of the Majesty on high (Heb. 1:3). He is in a high position, crowned with glory and honor, ministering in the heavens to carry out the application of God’s redemption for His salvation!

Christ was incarnated to be Ben-oni (the man of sorrows) and He resurrected to become Benjamin (the son of the right hand of God in glory and honor).

Hallelujah for such a Christ as the real Benjamin! This One God wants to bring forth in us for God’s expression, and this will happen! We are now in the process of transformation and maturation for Christ to be brought forth in us for God’s glory and expression!

Lord, in the way of Your shepherding, bring us all step by step from the dream to the reality of Bethel! Bring us to know You as the God of the house of God, the all-sufficient God in His house, so that we may set up an altar and consecrate ourselves to the God of the house of God. Lord, here in Your house we would become a drink offering constituted with Christ as the cheering wine, and here we would pour out our whole being on God’s building for God’s satisfaction. Lord, have mercy on us. Give us the personal prayers we need to be brought into the reality of Bethel, and gain the response You need from us. May we each have conversations with You to give You a way to operate in us according to Your heart’s desire!

References and Hymns on this Topic

• Inspiration: the Word of God, my Christian experience, bro. Ron Kangas’ sharing in the message for this week, and portions from, Life-study of Genesis (msg. 90), as quoted in, the Holy Word for Morning Revival on, Crystallization-Study of Genesis (3), week 4 / msg 4, The Reality of Bethel and the Bringing forth of Christ as the Son of Affliction and the Son of the Right Hand.
• Picture source, more sharing and ministry portions on this topic via the Christian Pictures blog.
• Hymns on this topic:
  # There is no gain but by a loss; / We cannot save but by the cross, / The corn of wheat to multiply / Must fall into the ground and die; / O should a soul alone remain / When it a hundredfold can gain? / O should a soul alone remain / When it a hundredfold can gain? (Hymns #623)
  # Make this poor self grow less and less, / Be Thou my life and aim; / Oh, make me daily through Thy grace / More meet to bear Thy name. (Hymns #395)
  # “Man of Sorrows,” what a name / For the Son of God who came / Ruined sinners to reclaim! / Hallelujah! what a Savior! (Hymns #108)
  # See the vision of Christ and the church; / Count the cost; reckon all things as loss; / Pay the price. The prize to gain Christ, / Burn the bridges; leave the world behind; / On God’s economy your heart be set / To live a life of no regrets. (New song on Paying the Price)