Walk in Wisdom

Blood Brothers

Genesis 25:23

And the LORD said to her, “Two nations are in your womb, and two peoples from within you shall be divided; the one shall be stronger than the other, the older shall serve the younger.”

I can’t help but think of the fractious histories of Israel, the Church, and of their relationship to each other as I read the poetic imagery above. Like brothers fashioned in the womb of Providence, one born at Sanai and the other at Pentecost, often divided, often fighting over birthrights, and often struggling to accept the other. Of course I’m speaking metaphorically, friend, but I see in this nutshell of Genesis 25:23 all the branches of God’s family tree. I see Cain and Abel, Isaac and Ishmael, Solomon and Absalom, the Northern tribes and the Southern Tribes, Paul and Barnabas, the Jewish widows and the Gentile widows, the Eastern churches and the Western churches, and you and me. Like my three-year-old daughter who yells at her brother to get lost whenever I’m holding her, it’s as if we’ve all been playing king-of-the-mountain on our Father’s lap from the beginning.

Christian, make room for your brothers and sisters today. Encourage your weaker siblings, serve and mentor your younger ones, and love them all as equals.