February 11, 2019
You Can't Earn It
Genesis 27:30–46
Neil Monroe
Central Truth
The day is coming when those that devalue the blessings of God and sell their title as His children for short-term pleasures will, in vain, be desperate for them.
Key Verse | Genesis 27:31
He also prepared delicious food and brought it to his father. And he said to his father, "Let my father arise and eat of his son's game, that you may bless me."
Genesis 27:30–46
30 As soon as Isaac had finished blessing Jacob, when Jacob had scarcely gone out from the presence of Isaac his father, Esau his brother came in from his hunting. 31 He also prepared delicious food and brought it to his father. And he said to his father, “Let my father arise and eat of his son's game, that you may bless me.” 32 His father Isaac said to him, “Who are you?” He answered, “I am your son, your firstborn, Esau.” 33 Then Isaac trembled very violently and said, “Who was it then that hunted game and brought it to me, and I ate it all before you came, and I have blessed him? Yes, and he shall be blessed.” 34 As soon as Esau heard the words of his father, he cried out with an exceedingly great and bitter cry and said to his father, “Bless me, even me also, O my father!” 35 But he said, “Your brother came deceitfully, and he has taken away your blessing.” 36 Esau said, “Is he not rightly named Jacob? 1 27:36 Jacob means He takes by the heel, or He cheats For he has cheated me these two times. He took away my birthright, and behold, now he has taken away my blessing.” Then he said, “Have you not reserved a blessing for me?” 37 Isaac answered and said to Esau, “Behold, I have made him lord over you, and all his brothers I have given to him for servants, and with grain and wine I have sustained him. What then can I do for you, my son?” 38 Esau said to his father, “Have you but one blessing, my father? Bless me, even me also, O my father.” And Esau lifted up his voice and wept.
39 Then Isaac his father answered and said to him:
“Behold, away from
2
27:39
Or Behold, of
the fatness of the earth shall your dwelling be,
and away from
3
27:39
Or and of
the dew of heaven on high.
40
By your sword you shall live,
and you shall serve your brother;
but when you grow restless
you shall break his yoke from your neck.”
41 Now Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing with which his father had blessed him, and Esau said to himself, “The days of mourning for my father are approaching; then I will kill my brother Jacob.” 42 But the words of Esau her older son were told to Rebekah. So she sent and called Jacob her younger son and said to him, “Behold, your brother Esau comforts himself about you by planning to kill you. 43 Now therefore, my son, obey my voice. Arise, flee to Laban my brother in Haran 44 and stay with him a while, until your brother's fury turns away— 45 until your brother's anger turns away from you, and he forgets what you have done to him. Then I will send and bring you from there. Why should I be bereft of you both in one day?”
46 Then Rebekah said to Isaac, “I loathe my life because of the Hittite women. 4 27:46 Hebrew daughters of Heth If Jacob marries one of the Hittite women like these, one of the women of the land, what good will my life be to me?”
Dive Deeper | Genesis 27:30–46
As humans, we tend to think of ourselves first. What do I want to eat? Where do I want to go? When will I be blessed? It's all about us, all the time. I know the things I'm doing are wrong, but who cares, I'll clean myself up later. We may not directly say this, but our actions tend to show it.
Just two chapters back, we saw Esau make a decision that set the stage for our story. He forfeits who he is called to be for a bowl of soup:
"Jacob said, 'Sell me your birthright now.' Esau said, 'I am about to die; of what use is a birthright to me?'" (Genesis 25:31-32)
If you're like me, you look at this and are dumbfounded. Esau, you traded the inheritance of having an abundance of land, being a great nation, and being blessed beyond all measure (see Genesis 12:2-3) for a bowl of vegetable soup? Yet we do this every day. We say things like:
- "Sex outside of marriage isn't that big of a deal."
- "I can stop drinking/doing drugs whenever I want."
And then, like Esau in Genesis 27:31, we try to work our way back. We try to prove to our Father that we're good enough.
- "Hey God, look at what I did, bless me!"
- "God, where is my spouse, bless me!"
We're missing the point. We're trying to win favor with a God that already loves us more than we could ever imagine.
"But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God." (John 1:12)
Christianity is not about how to clean yourself up and earn a blessing. "Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you." (James 4:8a) The greatest blessing you could ever receive isn't a husband, the best job, a house on the corner with a white picket fence, or even a bowl of soup.
The greatest blessing you could ever receive is that which you have been freely given through your Heavenly Father. Stop hunting and start trusting.
Discussion Questions
1. Are there things in your life that you're trading for the blessing of having an abundant life in Christ?
2. Who is someone that you can confess to and be held accountable?
3. What are some truths in Scripture about who God says you are that can serve as a reminder of why you'll never earn His love?