If you were here last Sunday, you’ll remember that the first reading was the perplexing story of Abraham being told by God to sacrifice his and Sarah’s only son Isaac. Abraham is convinced he’s heard God clearly, even though he’s saddled with doubts and misgivings. He delays the inevitable, but then just as he raises his knife and is about to go through with the sacrifice, the voice of an angel freezes him on the spot and commands him to stop. The lesson of the story is that hearing the voice of God is complicated. It requires intense discernment, especially when we feel that we’re being led by God to do something that grates against so much of what we know to be right and just. In times like that, we need to trust our doubts.  

Today the story of Abraham continues. Sarah has died, and Abraham is at the end of his long life. Isaac is a grown man and has presumably moved on, more or less, from the trauma of being bound to an altar and nearly slaughtered by his own father as a sacrifice. Isaac’s problem now is that he’s unmarried and hasn’t been able to find a wife. This is deeply distressing to Abraham because God had promised that, through Isaac, Abraham’s descendents would inherit the land where Abraham resided, the land of the Canaanites. The book of Genesis gives us an indication that Isaac may have been tempted to find a wife among the local Canaanites, but that does not sit well with Abraham. He wants Isaac to marry a woman from the land of his origin—modern day Iraq.  

Abraham is too old to travel, so he sends his top assistant—Eliezar—to go to Mesopotamia to find Isaac a wife. It’s a gruelling journey by camel, probably taking three weeks, but finally Eliezar’s caravan arrives at the destination. It’s the evening, and he immediately goes to the city well to get water for himself and his camels. Eliezar has no idea how he’s going to find Isaac a wife. So he prays for a sign. He’s at the well at a time when women typically go to draw water. Eliezar is trusting that the first woman who offers to draw water for him and his camels will be Isaac’s future wife. Along comes a young woman named Rebekah, who happens to be Abraham’s brother’s granddaughter, and she does exactly what Eliezar is hoping for: she offers him water, and then offers to water his camels as well. Needless to say, Eliezar is elated; he has received his sign.     

The story doesn’t end there. Eliezar goes to meet with Rebekah’s family and explains why he has journeyed all the way from Canaan. He tells them of the sign that he has just received. He then asks the family to allow Rebekah go with him back to Canaan to marry Isaac. The family gives their consent, on one condition. They ask Rebekah, “Are you willing to go?” And Rebekah responds, “Yes, I will go.” She accompanies Eliezar back to the land of the Canaanites, meets Isaac for the first time, becomes his wife, and gives birth to twins—Jacob and Esau—keeping very much alive the promise that God made to Abraham.  

To be clear, I would not recommend this story as a blueprint for successful match-making and finding a spouse. But I do think the story gives us a fundamental lesson, which is this: the will of God is not forced. Last Sunday we encountered a story where the will of God—or what Abraham thought was the will of God—was forced almost to fatal consequences. When your life is being drawn in a certain direction that doesn’t seem right, even though you believe that God is the one leading you in that direction, that is when trusting your doubts becomes so important. In the end, Abraham’s doubts were vindicated, even though he almost betrayed his intuition and sacrificed Isaac.  

In today’s story, there is no doubt on the part of Eliezar, no unsettling misgivings. Things unfold for him with increasing clarity. We might think that the sign he received at the well—when Rebekah offers him water and then offers water to the camels—is the most noteworthy part of the story. But what I find most compelling comes later on. When Eliezar meets Rebekah’s family, he tells them that the real reason he’s there is to find Isaac a wife, and he firmly believes that God has revealed Rebekah to be the one. Rebekah’s family listen intently to Eliezar and they’re persuaded by what he’s telling them. At that point they could’ve informed Rebekah, “Pack up your things; Eliezar is taking you to Canaan to begin married life.” But they don’t do that. Instead, they ask Rebekah, “Are you willing to go?” Is she willing to leave everything about her life up to this point and move to a foreign land to marry someone she hasn’t yet met? It’s a direct question that affirms her agency and volition as a woman. She could’ve very understandably said, “No, I don’t feel comfortable at all with this. Sorry, I’m staying put.” Instead, her reply is, “Yes, I will go.” We’re not told what prompted her decision. But it was her own decision in the end that was decisive. She chose to go.  

The will of God is not forced. God’s will is fulfilled through our agency. It doesn’t coerce or squash our volition. Martin Luther, the great 16th century church reformer, propagated a theology of vocation that has remained highly influential up to the present. Luther believed that God calls us to specific action, irrespective of our own inclinations and interests and circumstances; the word comes to us, and we obey. But that’s not the kind of theology that arises from today’s reading. What we find is that God works through the circumstances of where people are at. God doesn’t come to us out of the blue; God is already there, moving in the midst of our everday reality.  

Let me conclude with a disclaimer: the will of God is not forced, but it is also not reducible to the decisions we make for ourselves. Despite all our heartfelt desires and good intentions, we don’t always act in alignment with God’s will. Which is why we need guidance. In today’s Gospel, Jesus extends an invitation to everyone, including each one of us today, who is seeking clarity, a deeper connection to God, a unity with the eternal Source of all things. Jesus says, “Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” Jesus invites us to learn from him by following him, by emulating his own life. That means doing the hard thing of giving up our life—our comfort and stability—like Rebekah chose for herself. But when we do that, Jesus says that we will find rest. We will bask in the peace of God that passes all understanding. And the will of God in our lives will be free and not forced.