Todays Devotion (Genesis 25-27) All children need to be taught the importance of reading the Word of God. Please Like and SHARE on Facebook to spread the good Word! And he said, Is not he rightly named Jacob? For he hath supplanted me these two times: he took away my birthright; and, behold, now he hath taken away my blessing. And he said, Hast thou not reserved a blessing for me (Gen. 27:36)? After 20 years of marriage, Isaac and Rebekah were still childless. Unlike his parents, however, who attempted a worldly solution to their own infertility issues (16:2-4), Isaac intreated (asked) the Lord for his wife, because she was barren: and the Lord was intreated of him, and Rebekah his wife conceived (25:21). At the age of 60, Isaac fathered twin boys, Esau and Jacob. The relationship between the brothers had been marked by strife and contention since before the day of their birth. Rebekah had felt such a struggle within her womb that she had prayed for guidance. And the Lord said unto her, Two nations are in thy womb, and two manner of people shall be separated from thy bowels; and the one people shall be stronger than the other people; and the elder shall serve the younger (25:23). As the boys grew into manhood, their differences became even more pronounced. And the boys grew: and Esau was a cunning hunter, a man of the field; and Jacob was a plain man, dwelling in tents (25:27). Esau was interested only in immediate physical satisfaction, while Jacob concerned himself with preparing for the future. Esau revealed his total lack of interest in spiritual things when he sold his birthright (as firstborn son) to Jacob for a bowl of stew. And Esau said, Behold, I am at the point to die: and what profit shall this birthright do to me (25:32)? The family birthright included, among other things, the sacred position of spiritual leadership of the family. It also confirmed that the recipient was heir to the Covenant between God and Abraham and his descendants. The birthright was a link in the line of descent through which the Messiah was to come (Num. 24:17-19). Although Esau later regretted his decision and accused his brother of tricking him, the fact is that Jacob purchased the birthright, including the Abrahamic Covenant, from Esau for what Esau thought it was worth. Many today, like Esau, are totally focused on their physical and temporal needs and desires. They dont consider Gods will in their lives until it is too late. Once they realize their mistake, they cast around and look for someone else to blame. As Christians, we know that the Lord doesnt believe in assigned fault. He holds each of us responsible for our own behaviors and actions. For this reason, rather than wasting our time criticizing others and accusing them of causing us to stumble, we need to guard our own hearts and minds to ensure that we stay within the will of God. Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled; Lest there be any fornicator, or profane person, as Esau, who for one morsel of meat sold his birthright. For ye know how that afterward, when he would have inherited the blessing, he was rejected: for he found no place of repentance, though he sought it carefully with tears (Heb. 12:15-17). Excerpts from SBC / BiblePathway / Delaney Baptist Church
Posted on: Fri, 09 Jan 2015 16:12:05 +0000
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