Abraham had a good beginning with being called, but there is no record of his being chosen or of his reaching an ultimate and matured end. For his completion, Abraham had the need of Jacob's being chosen and of Jacob's matured end. Do you believe that, according to the record of Genesis, Abraham attained to the highest and consummate maturity of life? We cannot find such a record. Abraham's offering Isaac on the altar was the climax of his spiritual life (ch. 22). However, he did not reach maturity. In chapter twenty-four we see that he did something marvelous in obtaining a wife for his son, Isaac. But, after that, he took another wife (25:1). This shows us that Abraham was not matured. Where, then, is Abraham's maturity? His maturity is in Jacob's maturity.
Let us use as an illustration of this the visits that Abraham and Jacob made to Egypt. Abraham's trip to Egypt was shameful, for he told a lie about his wife (12:10-20). But Jacob had a glorious visit (47:7). He did not go to Egypt in order to take advantage of others. He went there with a blessing hand, even blessing Pharaoh, the greatest king on earth at the time (47:10). This reveals that the maturity of life is with Jacob and not with Abraham. According to the Bible, the greater always blesses the lesser (Heb. 7:7). No young one can bless an older one. In order to bless people you need the maturity of life. Does the Bible ever say that Abraham blessed someone? No. Jacob, on the contrary, was so mature in life that he could bestow blessings on others. When he blessed his grandchildren, he did it clearly, not blindly as did Isaac. When Joseph tried to change the position of his hands, Jacob refused and said, "I know it, my son, I know it" (48:19). Jacob was fully matured. Although Abraham was high in the life of faith, we do not see in him the maturity of life that we see in Jacob. For the maturity of life, Abraham had to rely upon Jacob. Although Abraham was the grandfather, he still needed his grandson for his completion. By this we can see that, according to experience, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob are not individuals but three members of the whole Body. Likewise, we are members one of another (Rom. 12:5) and, in certain aspects of life, we need to depend on each other.
Isaac is another illustration of this. Isaac's experience was without beginning or end. He was never called and he never matured. Although he blessed his sons, he did it blindly (27:18-29), not so clearly as Jacob did with his grandsons. Isaac needed the beginning of both Abraham's and Jacob's experiences and the end of Jacob's experience for his completion. Isaac was in the middle. He was never dealt with. Although his father and son were dealt with, he did not need any dealings. He was fully covered by the two ends in the matter of God's dealings. Many times it is good for us to stay in the midst of other members of the Body, for those ahead of us and those behind us become our completion. This is the coordination among the members of the Body.