OPEN HEAVENS DEVOTIONAL - TUESDAY - 4/11/2014 - BE NOT AN ESAU - BY PASTOR E.A. ADEBOYE

BE NOT AN ESAU

Memorise

Lest there be any fornicator, or profane person, as Esau, who for one morsel of meat sold his birthright.

Hebrews 12:16

Read

Genesis 25:29-34

25:29 And Jacob sod pottage: and Esau came from the field, and he was faint:

25:30 And Esau said to Jacob, Feed me, I pray thee, with that same red pottage; for I am faint: therefore was his name called Edom.

25:31 And Jacob said, Sell me this day thy birthright.

25:32 And Esau said, Behold, I am at the point to die: and what profit shall this birthright do to me?

25:33 And Jacob said, Swear to me this day; and he sware unto him: and he sold his birthright unto Jacob.

25:34 Then Jacob gave Esau bread and pottage of lentiles; and he did eat and drink, and rose up, and went his way: thus Esau despised his birthright.

Message

The Bible in Matthew 7:6 warns us not to give our precious things to those who will not value them.

“Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you.”

In this scripture, our God expresses His displeasure at the lack of respect for valuable things, and on how such attitude results in the abuse and mismanagement of such things. God’s displeasure is not only at the attitude, but also for persons exhibiting such attitude. God, who knows all things before they happen, must have seen this evil trait in the man Esau before he was born; hence the rejection of Esau and His preference for Jacob (Romans 9:13). The proof of Esau’s character of carelessness and lack of regard for his heritage can clearly be seen in the attitude he displayed when he came back from the field hungry. He requested to be fed from the pottage of his twin brother Jacob, who in return, asked him to trade in his heavenly apportioned birthright and he agreed. You see, the Bible has a reason for every word it uses in its accounts of events, Genesis 25:30 says:

“And Esau said to Jacob, Feed me, I pray thee, with that same red pottage; for I am faint: therefore was his name called Edom.”

There is an element of the lust of the eye displayed by Esau here. The redness of the boiling pottage attracted him, coupled with his hunger. But what are these compared to his birthright. Even his state of being “hungry to the point of death” is not sufficient to justify him exchanging his treasure for food. Within the entire household, there would have been some fast food somewhere, but the red pottage caught his eyes and heart. How on earth did Jacob conjure this request he made of his brother, Esau. I believe Jacob already knew that important things never mattered to his brother and this was why he had the guts to throw that kind of request at him. True to his assessment, Esau proved to be his real self – careless, negligent and therefore worthless.

Brethren, if you are noticed to be a carefree, careless fellow, those who would take advantage of you would try you out. Some sisters will still be smiling when male co-workers go beyond their boundary by touching them carelessly. Why then would such men not think in their hearts that you wouldn’t mind being asked to bed? Believe me, they would assiduously work towards it.

Action Point:

Be careful, don’t be an Esau. It was too late for Esau, when he realised his error.

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR

2 Kings 4:38-6:23

Proverbs 21:16-29