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Cape Elizabeth Church of the Nazarene |
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Texts:
Genesis
25:19-34; Romans 8:1-11 As we approach our scripture text in Genesis 25 this morning, we find
that the promise given to Abraham is once again in jeopardy.
Isaac has grown and married, but Abraham has passed on without ever
seeing one of his grandchildren.
Poor Father Abraham, after seeing the promise given, challenged, renewed,
and challenged again, finally sees Isaac get married.
But, unfortunately, Abraham goes to the grave without knowing if the
Promise would be fulfilled.
For, you see, Rebekah, like her mother-in-law Sarah, was also barren.
Can you picture Isaac and Rebekah--hoping and praying to see a child born
before Abraham died? Surely,
they wished to produce another heir to the Promise of God.
And yet, despite the fact that Isaac had a miraculous birth, and that God
had divinely directed Abraham’s servant to choose Rebekah as the wife of
Isaac, there were no children. And
so, Isaac does the only thing he can do.
He prays to God and asks Him to open Rebekah’s womb.
God responds miraculously, not just with one baby, but with two baby
boys. Isaac and
Rebekah should have been so happy, even overjoyed at the prospect of two
bouncing baby boys added to their family, but something seemed wrong with the
pregnancy. The
babies constantly wrestled inside Rebekah.
Scripture tells us that they jostled each other so much that Rebekah
asked God what was happening to her. In
Genesis chapter 25, verse 23, we read what the Lord says to her: 23b
“Two nations are in your womb, and two peoples from within you will be
separated; one people will be stronger than the other, and the older will serve
the younger.” I’m not sure that God’s response was of much comfort to Rebekah.
Surely, she was amazed at the prospect of giving birth to twins, but then
to have God tell her that they would both be fathers of great nations should
have come as a shock. And
then, to be told that they would always be at war with one another would be
enough to break any mothers’ heart.
To add to the great surprise and shock, Rebekah was told that it would be
the younger child who would receive the greater blessings. Sure
enough, even in childbirth Rebekah could see the struggle between her sons.
Esau was born first, red and hairy, and Jacob was quick to follow,
holding on to Esau’s heel.
The two boys were very different.
Esau grew up to be a great hunter.
He liked to be outdoors, away from home, demonstrating his skill and
strength. Jacob,
on the other hand, was a homebody, living among his family, watching after the
affairs of the home. He
was a great cook, and seems to have spent much time with his mother attending
the affairs of the household. Scripture
tells us that Isaac had a taste for wild game and so he loved Esau more than
Jacob, but that Rebekah loved Jacob more than Esau.
29 Once when Jacob was cooking some stew, Esau came in from
the open country, famished.30 He said to Jacob, “Quick, let me have
some of that red stew! I’m
famished!” (That is why he was also called Edom.)
31 Jacob
replied, “First sell me your birthright.” 32 “Look,
I am about to die,” Esau said.
“What good is the birthright to me?”
33 “But
Jacob said, “Swear to me first.” So he swore an oath to him, selling his
birthright to Jacob. 34 Then
Jacob gave Esau some bread and some lentil stew.
He ate and drank, and then got up and left. So Esau despised his birthright. I don’t know about you, but I have a hard time understanding Esau in
this story. As
the oldest son, Esau had the birthright, which meant he was destined to inherit
a double portion of his father’s estate.
He would receive twice as much land, flocks and servants than any other
siblings. Not
only that, but he would be able to pick out which part of the inheritance he
received. On top
of all that, as the firstborn, Esau would have inherited the covenantal promise
of God given to his grandfather Abraham, and extended to his father Isaac.
You remember the promise of God given to Abraham don’t you?
The promise recorded in Genesis 12, verses 2 and 3? 2 “I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you;
I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing.
3 I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I
will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.”
And then, there was the promise in Genesis 13, where God said that
Abraham’s offspring would be as numerous as the dust of the earth.
And in Genesis chapter 15, God said that Abraham’s descendents would be
as numerous as the stars in the sky.
And yet, Esau takes the double portion of his father’s estate, and the
promises of God, and trades them in for a bowl of red stew.
We don’t really see how Esau could be so short-sighted as to focus on
the immediate desires of his flesh instead of the promises of God for his life.
We look at Esau and shake our heads in dismay and disgust at the way in
which he despised his birthright, and in doing so despised the very promises of
God...all for a bowl of red stew. And yet, I wonder...how many times have we traded in God’s promises for
a bowl of red stew? Oh...our
stew is different than the stew Jacob offered his brother.
Our stew more often consists of controlling our time, talent, and
treasures, instead of allowing God to control them.
Our red stew might be our time, as we become mesmerized by the world of
convenience and hurry.
Perhaps our stew is those gifts and talents that we keep to ourselves
instead of sharing with others for the Glory of God.
Or, maybe, our red stew is in the form of money or possessions which draw
our focus from God. In
any case, we will never come out on top if we trade in God’s plan for our
lives for a simple bowl of red stew.
Time has become a priceless commodity in today’s economy.
With the advent of numerous gizmos and gadgets designed to make our lives
easier, our time becomes precious to us.
Drive-up fast food.
Cell phones. Palm
Pilots. High
speed internet access. Microwave
ovens. Automated
Teller Machines. Carpool
express lanes. Email.
TV Dinners. Video
Cassette Recorders, DVD Players, and more... Sometimes
I have to stop myself and wonder if the world is a better place because of all
these gizmos and gadgets.
Sure, we can work more efficiently, but at what cost?
In the world of the drive-up marketplace, we have traded in our nature as
a relational beings for the bowl of convenience.
In many cases, we don’t develop relationships with those who wait on us
because they are in a hurry, we are in a hurry, and the people in line behind us
are in a hurry. God
has made us in His image, and as such we are relational beings.
But when we sacrifice relationship for convenience, we have traded in all
that He has intended us to be for a bowl of red stew.
Sometimes, we are too busy for the things of God.
The pressures of our jobs and activities keep us from spending time with
God and with His people.
When this happens, we have traded in part of His plan for our lives for a
bowl of red stew. When
we simply don’t think we have time enough to serve Him, or to witness to
others, or to read His Word, we have just made a tent next door to Esau, all for
the red stew of convenience. Perhaps, we haven’t truly surrendered our talents into God’s service.
We may have great insecurities, we may be afraid to follow His call, or
we may simply not see how He has gifted us.
God gives gifts to his children so that they may use them for His glory.
When we don’t exercise our talents and gifts, we trade in all that He
has for us for a bowl of red stew.
If we worry that we may not be good enough to serve, or are convinced
that someone else could do it better, we trade in His plan for our lives for a
bowl of red stew.
Often, our unanswered questions keep us from serving God in the way He
likes. We
don’t dare start something, because we fear that we don’t know the ending.
When that happens, we have traded in our faith in God’s guidance for
the red stew of human certainty.
If our talents are not surrendered to Him, we will never experience all
of the life that He has planned for us...all for a bowl of red stew.
Or, perhaps, we have found it difficult to surrender our checkbooks to
Him. Or our
houses. Or our
cars. We must
remember that all that we have truly belongs to Him.
We either have the choice of using it for His glory and in His service,
or using it for ourselves.
When our belongings aren’t surrendered to Him, we have traded in His
promises of care and blessing for the bowl of materialism.
Surrendering our possessions to God is so much more than simply putting a
tithe check in the offering plate on Sunday morning.
Really, tithing is a pretty simple thing to do when you consider the
reality that ALL we have belongs to God and should be in His service. Whether
it’s making your car available for a guest missionary, or providing food for a
traveling stranger, if we don’t allow all of our possessions to be in His
service than we have traded in part of His plan for our lives for a simple bowl
of red stew. In
our Romans text this morning, Paul spoke very clearly of these issues.
Hear these words again from Romans 8:5-8:
5 Those who live according to the sinful nature have their
minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the
Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires.
6 The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by
the Spirit is life and peace; 7 the sinful mind is hostile to God.
It does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so.
8 Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God. For Paul, the issue is one of control.
Do we live a life which we control, or have we turned over the reins to
God’s Spirit, allowing Him to have control over the direction of our lives?
He will never force that control on us, but we must willingly surrender
our control, yielding ourselves to Him alone.
Are we living according to the Spirit, or have we traded that in for a
simple bowl of red stew, maintaining control over our own life?
Do we think that we know what’s best, or are we willing to recognize
that Almighty God, Creator of Heaven and Earth knows what’s best for us and
will take care of us? Why
is it that we think we know what’s best?
As children, we would question our parents, or disagree with them, and
often be told that “father knows best.”
Somehow, in our adult life, we tend to forget that “Father knows
best,” and take the reins for our life, providing our own direction.
What Paul seems to suggest here in Romans is that we must have our minds
set on “Kingdom things.”
When we set our minds on what God’s Spirit desires, we know that our
path will be straight and true.
When we allow our focus to shift inwardly, we act according to the sin
nature. Truly,
through Christ Jesus, we have been set free from the law of sin and death, and
are no longer bound to live our lives according to the sin nature.
Through Jesus, we have been set free from our insatiable hunger for red
stew, and can live our lives according to the Spirit, which will bring us life
and peace. George Beverly Shea was once tempted to trade in some of the promises of
God for a bowl of red stew.
As you may know, George Beverly Shea grew up in a Christian household
with Christian parents.
He was often encouraged to use his talents and his singing voice in the
worship services of the Wesleyan Methodist churches which his father pastored.
Finances were tight in the Shea household, so at 23 years of age, he had
dropped out of college to work in an insurance office.
He continued to sing in churches and on radio shows.
Unexpectedly, George was one day called and asked to audition for a
secular singing position in New York City.
He passed the audition and was offered a substantial salary. While
George was contemplating his decision, one Sunday, as he went to the family
piano to prepare a song for the morning service, he found a poem that his mother
had left lying around. She
had been in the habit of leaving inspirational poems and lyrics around in hopes
that God would use them to provide direction for George’s life.
As he read the lyrics of the poem, he was so profoundly impacted by the
text that he immediately began to compose music for the lyrics, and used that
song that same day in his father’s church service. “I’d
Rather Have Jesus” became George Beverly Shea’s theme song over the years.
He says, “Over the years, I’ve not sung any song more than ’I’d
Rather Have Jesus,’ but I never tire of Mrs. Miller’s heartfelt words.”
For George Beverly Shea, those words impacted him so deeply that he knew
he must always give his talents and gifts to God, not ever trading in the
promises of God simply for a bowl of red stew.[i] Is that your testimony today?
Can you stand and sing that you’d rather have Jesus than ANYTHING this
world affords today? Or,
like Esau, have you been guilty of trading in the promises of God for a bowl of
red stew? I’d
challenge you this morning to make these words the testimony of your heart.
I’d encourage you to make them your theme song.
Times will come when you will be tempted to trade in God’s promises for
a bowl of red stew. Times
will come when you will be tempted to grasp control of your life, instead of
allowing God’s Spirit to direct your paths.
During those times, sing these words, and remember that you’d rather
have Jesus than anything else.
Remember that God’s eternal promises are worth far more than ANY bowl
of red stew this world may ever offer you. [i]
Osbeck, Kenneth W., Amazing Grace-366 Inspiring Hymn Stories for Daily
Devotions. Kregel Publications : Grand Rapids 1990.
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