The Greatest Story - Esau and Jacob

[00:00:01] Speaker A: Welcome to the River Church podcast. [00:00:03] Speaker B: We're all about bringing the life, hope and love of Jesus to everyone around us. For more information, check out our [email protected] There you go. Good morning, church. Yes. I don't know if I'm saying I'm sad, but it's good to just know you, Brent, you know, and Steve and I celebrate you particularly because I heard the stories of how you served in children's church for many years and you used to wear the costumes and you used to do all those play and drama with all of your heart. So I celebrate the mother and the grandmother that you are today, even as you leave us. God bless you, church. Yes, God bless her. Amen to that. This morning we're going to look at another part of our one great story series. But before we do that, I want to ask you a question. If you were. If God was going to choose someone to carry forward his greatest promise, would he choose the strongest person or would he choose the most spiritual person? Or would he choose the most morally impressive person? So let's do A, B, C, strongest, spiritual or most morally. Which one do you think? A. Who are the A people strongest? Okay. Okay. I have one hand. Spiritual, most spiritual people. Okay. Two. Three. Okay. Four. Okay. The most morally impressive person is that who God would choose. Oh, we're so sure of that. I love it. [00:01:38] Speaker A: Because the truth of the matter, thank [00:01:40] Speaker B: you to everyone who gave me answers, is that if that were the rule, most of us would probably disqualify ourselves pretty quickly. I, I will, I will not be standing. I'm not the most spiritual person. I'm not the most strongest person. I'm not even the, I'm not even, I don't even know if I'm strong. And I'm not the most morally impressive person. And whilst we're all on a journey, you know, of being like Christ, you would see that when you look at the Bible carefully, when you read and study, something surprising comes, becomes very clear. It is the fact that God repeatedly chooses the unlikely people, chooses the messy people, chooses the imperfect people. And I wonder sometimes that if he didn't do that, where would I be? And I don't know if you're also saying that to yourself. And Genesis 25 and 27, which is the core text I've been given for today, might be one of the clearest example, honestly of that in the entire Bible. So we're going to look at Genesis 25 and 27 today, how God moves his promise through imperfect people. We're going to see what that looks like. But more importantly, you're going to be reminded today of the inheritance of grace that we all have. So please walk with me. Genesis 25 and 27 are two chapters, so I can't read it. If not, we'll be here forever. And I don't want to keep the mummies in the room. I know you have a big day ahead. All right, so we're going to look at that. So, Father, we just ask that you speak to us. You know, as I sat down there, it was reminding me of John 17, that it is how Jesus was saying to the Lord and he was saying, you know, I have made your name known. I have brought them to you. That's what I'm saying right here. That God, your name be known, your grace be felt, that your power be at work in us. That is all of you. God, this moment that even I, as I speak, will be fed by you this morning. So shall it be in Jesus name. Amen. All right, so the greatest story, the story that is in this Bible that we read, you know, the summary if you ask me, is that the Bible is a story of a faithful God pursuing broken people to restore them through Jesus and to dwell with them forever. If you ever needed a summary of [00:04:04] Speaker A: what we are about, what the Bible [00:04:06] Speaker B: is about, honestly speaking, this is a good summary to take away. [00:04:11] Speaker A: If you need to ever share with [00:04:12] Speaker B: a friend at work, you can start with this because they will find themselves even in this summary. And so we're going to look at this very messy story in Genesis 25 and 27. That is a family that is full of favoritism, a family full of deception, a family full of poor decisions and broken relationships. And yet in the middle of that mess, something incredible is happening. And that's what we see here. So this is the story of Isaac and Rebekah, Esau and Jacob. If you're wondering what story is in those two chapters, I'm going to give a quick summary. But I want you to please listen attentively to the story. Abraham gave birth to Isaac. We have been talking about Abraham. You remember, Colin was here. He shared Athelu as well. We've been talking, we've been going through that series. And so he finally gave birth to the promised son, Isaac. Isn't it as God has promised? When Isaac was 40 years old, he got married to Rebecca as destined by God. This was a marriage backed by heaven. Clearly not. You know, you know how sometimes this one heaven backed it because it was a choice that Came as an answered prayer. Do you see? However, they didn't have children for many years. They didn't have any child. In fact, when I did the calculation, they didn't have children for at least 20 years. 20 years of waiting. Isaac then prays for his wife. The Bible literally said Isaac prayed for his wife to get pregnant. And God answered his prayers. She conceived and then started having strange experiences, like a war was going on in her womb. That's what the Bible says. She went to seek the face of God for it. She went to ask the lord. And Genesis 25:23 tells us, this is the story. And you can take those bullet points. But Genesis 25:23 says to us that [00:06:04] Speaker A: the Lord said to Rebekah, Two nations [00:06:06] Speaker B: are in your womb and two peoples from within you will be separated. [00:06:13] Speaker A: One people will be stronger than the [00:06:15] Speaker B: other, and the older will serve the younger. And you wonder, wow, what a word from the Lord. The boys grew. The first born was called Esau, and the second born was called Jacob. Esau was a skillful hunter, and Jacob was a stay at home man among the tents. He would always be back there. The father liked the firstborn. Look at that. The father liked Esau and the mother liked the second born. Imagine the favoritism. One day, Jacob, the second born, was cooking, and Esau, the firstborn, came back from the bush, having been out there hunting. And he was very hungry. And he said to his brother, hurry, let me have some of your stew. I'm famished. And Jacob said, sell me your birthright first. And Esau, in the midst of desperate hunger, when the flesh was knocking hard, Esau said, what is the birthright to me? And he swore an oath to his younger brother. For a bowl of lentil stew and bread. He lost his inheritance. He sold it for. For a bowl of stew, but Jacob stole it from him. Years later, when Isaac prepares to give the formal covenant blessing to Esau, because that's what they do to the first child. That's how it was. Through the help of Rebekah, Jacob got that blessing instead. Literally. The mother of the two boys saw to it that Jacob deceived the blind father and received the blessing instead. Before Esau could get around to the requirements of the father, Jacob got that blessing. Esau came back, and he cried in anguish because he had lost his inheritance. This is the story we're going to be considering today. But you know, as I began to prepare this, I was not even preparing yet. So let me not lie, I was not preparing yet. When I Was praying one morning by my bedside. And the Lord said, you are going to call out the Rebecca's in the room. I want my daughters to know that I see them. And I thought, really? And he began to make a list. And I thought, okay, but how does this match? My preaching is not really about that. But then I realized it's Mother's Day. And I thought, oh my God, there is something here. And I said, I will obey you. And before we go too far, I want us to pause in this moment and think about Rebecca. I want us to notice that at the center of this story in Genesis 25 and 27 is not just Isaac, Esau and Jacob. It's actually a mother. A mother long before those kids were born. [00:08:58] Speaker A: A mother who was seeking God about [00:09:00] Speaker B: the future, seeking God about what they will become. Rebecca waited to have a child for 20 years. She then had her prayers, you know, answered after seeking the face of the Lord her husband prayed for. Rebecca was going through a strange situation. Something was happening in the womb. Womb that she wasn't used to, that she didn't understand. Confusion was there. But she did not ignore that confusion. Rebecca sought the Lord. Rebecca went and said, she did not pretend everything was fine. She went to the Lord. Rebecca got a word from the Lord, spoke to her about the destiny of her children that were in her womb. And Rebecca stayed. And she watched things unfold. So this morning, God literally saying, is there a Rebecca in the room? And he says, present the Rebecca's in the room before the Lord. And so this is what the Lord was saying, that are there any Rebeccas who are waiting on God for answers about their needs, their children, or their future? I am here. Are you here? If you are here, please stand. Because the Lord says, I see you. Please rise. [00:10:07] Speaker A: Are there any Rebeccas who are trusting God for their children and the next generation, even their grandchildren, and saying, I'm trusting God for you. I know you will serve the Lord. [00:10:17] Speaker B: I don't know if you are here. [00:10:19] Speaker A: And God was saying to me, there are Rebecca's there who are tired, but they are still showing up confused about what's happening in their womb, in their family, in their home. But they are still standing up every day. He says, rise this morning because I see you, says the Lord. That's what he says. Are there Rebecca's here who have made mistakes along the way in their parenting or in anything at all, in their choices. And he says, but still you are desiring God's will be done in your life, in your family. He says, Rise this morning. If you are here and anyone who has a word from the Lord, is there a woman here who has a word and says, I'm still waiting for that word to come to pass. I want you to rise this morning. We are going to join our faith together because God says, I see them and I want them to know that my will will come to pass in their lives, in their homes, in their children, regardless of what has been. That's the word of the Lord. And in fact, if you're a woman here and you are still not standing, but you know, you desire to seek, to seek the face of the Lord, you desire to see his hand in your life, you desire to see him make choices for you, then this is your moment. Please rise. You desire that his purpose be fulfilled in your life. If you are here, you are that woman. Rise this morning. All the men who are around you, around them, put your hand close to them. Put your hand on them. Hold them. You are going to speak grace. That's what I heard. Grace. Speak grace. Speak strength. Speak light. Some of them need light. That's all they're looking for. This confusion they're going through, they just need light. Can you pray? Put your hands on them. Because God is here, meeting with every woman here, and is seeing us clearly. So say, I see you and I see what you're going through. Can we start praying? Pray grace, light, strength. Pray peace. [00:12:07] Speaker B: Pray joy. [00:12:09] Speaker A: Pray strength, answers. Pray good health and faith for them to see that which God has said about them, that which is in the word of God concerning every woman here. Yes, that you will see your children prosper. They will blossom. There will be peace in your home. Your children will be all that God has destined them to be. You, as a woman who is still maybe single, you will see the will of the Lord come to pass in your life. You will end up in the home he has destined for you. You will bear children. You are here and you're thinking, well, I may not really have my own children, but you have children you have carried in your womb, people you pray for, your siblings. Oh, I pray strength for you. I pray more wisdom for you in the mighty name of Jesus. Father, we thank you in obedience. [00:13:00] Speaker B: Lord, we thank you. [00:13:01] Speaker A: And even as a Rebecca myself, I come before you, Lord, on behalf of every woman here. And I say thank you because you [00:13:08] Speaker B: have placed us in this church for a reason. [00:13:10] Speaker A: And, Father, as you spoke to Rebecca about the future of our children, we ask that you give us that same wisdom. Give us light over the situations of our lives. Give us light, oh God, and carry [00:13:19] Speaker B: us on the wings of your spirit [00:13:21] Speaker A: as we go into this year, this day, even another Mother's Day being celebrated. Lord, would you carry us on the wings of your spirit and help us, oh God, let our homes become places [00:13:31] Speaker B: where your will is sought and where your will happens. In the name of Jesus, thank you [00:13:36] Speaker A: for the legacy of faith that will [00:13:38] Speaker B: continue through each and every woman in this room. In the name of Jesus, thank you [00:13:43] Speaker A: for your purposes that will stand in [00:13:45] Speaker B: our lives, in our families, and in this church, in Jesus mighty name. Amen. Thank you, God. [00:13:52] Speaker A: You can take your seats, Rebecca. Can you celebrate yourself, please? [00:14:00] Speaker B: Rebecca's story reminds us that God often works. Thank you, gentlemen. Can we celebrate our gentlemen? Thank you. [00:14:07] Speaker A: Reminds us that God often works through [00:14:09] Speaker B: ordinary people in ordinary family to establish extraordinary purposes. [00:14:16] Speaker A: That leads us to the first truth [00:14:18] Speaker B: that we see in Genesis 25. We actually see God's redemptive story moving forward by his sovereign grace. You see the story of Esau and Jacob as messy as it is. One big lesson that I pick, which is the first point for today, is [00:14:35] Speaker A: that you will see that we are [00:14:37] Speaker B: chosen for God's predestined purpose. [00:14:40] Speaker A: You would see and you wonder why [00:14:42] Speaker B: did you know she had that word? [00:14:44] Speaker A: But that word for me, and the way I understood it as I prepared for this sermon, is that God was saying, see, I choose. And you know, I have predestined plans and purpose about what happens to you, to me, you know, literally, I have [00:14:57] Speaker B: my plans and my purpose. [00:14:59] Speaker A: So we see that Jacob chosen, you know, Esau chosen as well, for whatever it is that the Lord had planned, [00:15:05] Speaker B: that it was going to be people. We have all been chosen. [00:15:09] Speaker A: My favorite verse of the Bible till [00:15:11] Speaker B: tomorrow, except he changes it, is Ephesians 2:10. [00:15:15] Speaker A: That scripture says that because of what Jesus Christ did on the cross, I am able to live the predestined life that God has for me. The plan that he had for me before I was born, that even though I missed my way like this and I went that way because Jesus Christ died, he brings us back and takes us on that straight path. Ephesians 2:10. This is what it is, that God chose us to still come and be the person he ordained us to be. Can you say hallelujah to that? That is a word for anybody you know in your life or your family that is still yet to come to the Lord. That is a hope you should have for them, that they will still live [00:15:54] Speaker B: the predestined life that God has for them. So we are chosen. God chooses. He does as he wants. The thing about it, I know some of us are wondering, but why would he say the younger should, you know, the older should serve the younger. Why would he say that? Let me tell you what I saw there. What I saw there is that, yes, whilst that was how it happened, and that's how the tradition and the system does it. God reverses the system. You ask why? I'll tell you. Because the choice that he made here is a reflection of God's election. It's a reflection of God's grace. It's a reflection that shows us that his covenant promise of salvation was never, will never be about human strength, human status or anything like that. I'm telling you because if not, I [00:16:44] Speaker A: wonder then what then happens to those [00:16:47] Speaker B: who maybe don't normally get things automatically, who don't get the inheritance automatically. It's just his way of saying, see, it's always about my grace. It's about my election. It's why he says we are a chosen people, right? A royal. [00:16:59] Speaker A: Do you know that scripture? [00:17:00] Speaker B: Yes, Yes. A peculiar people. That's why he says we're chosen. [00:17:04] Speaker A: And he says that he's also showing us that his predestined purposes and choices, [00:17:09] Speaker B: even we see that where you see Isaac instead of Ishmael, that somehow Ishmael came before Isaac. If you don't know the story of Abraham, we've done it here, you know, [00:17:18] Speaker A: you will see that he still says, [00:17:20] Speaker B: it's Isaac, that I have the word over, the promise over. [00:17:23] Speaker A: You still see it in when David [00:17:25] Speaker B: was going to be chosen as king, [00:17:26] Speaker A: did you see the prophet Samuel, you know, going there, thinking it was going to be the taller brothers, you know, but. And God was saying, no, it's this one. [00:17:33] Speaker B: It's just the fact that he says, [00:17:35] Speaker A: I have plans, I have purposes, and [00:17:37] Speaker B: this is how I want it to happen. [00:17:39] Speaker A: Do you see? [00:17:40] Speaker B: And that must be something that remains in our heart. And so we see that even when Jesus comes. You'd have thought that Jesus would come, maybe enthroned from heaven on a golden throne to the earth, isn't it? But no, allowed him to come as a crucified Messiah, literally a baby in a manger. You'd be wondering why. But that's his choice. That's his predestined purpose. That's how he wants it. And that's the God we serve. Paul directly explains this for us in Romans 9:12. He says, before the twins were born or had done anything good or bad in order that God's purpose in election might stand. She was told, the older will serve the younger, the older will serve the younger. And then he goes. Paul says, what then shall we say? Is God unjust? No, not at all. For he says to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. It does not, therefore, depend on human desire or effort, but on God's mercy. The purpose of this point number one is that you remember every day that it is by the mercy of God, that is, by the choice of God, that is by the election of God, that we are saved, his grace that we have received. I go on to say the second point that jumped at me as I was making notes is how we cannot miss the fact that God truly, truly loves us. And even though we may think our lives are messy, I don't know if there's anyone maybe, who even has a messier past, maybe than me. [00:19:30] Speaker A: I don't even know. [00:19:31] Speaker B: But I'm here to tell you that God is in the works, and he's doing such a beautiful work. [00:19:36] Speaker A: Look at Isaac, look at Rebecca, look at. Look at Esau, look at Jacob. [00:19:41] Speaker B: Flawed, like no one was even clean. Literally. Esau belittles his birthright. How do you just say to hell? You know, forgive the. You know, just. How do you just say whatever to my inheritance? Forgive my language. [00:19:58] Speaker A: But it's the fact that you see that he did not think so much of it. The Bible says at some point that, see, that no one is sexually immoral or is godless like Esau. Meaning that there was something about Esau when he was saying, don't worry about this. I don't care about this. What's the importance of my birthright? He was not aware he did not carry the heart that he should have carried. And so he said, who, for a [00:20:23] Speaker B: single meal, sold his inheritance. His inheritance, right as the oldest son. And so you see, even Jacob, the liar, the supplanter, deceives his father, wears the skin of the animal on his arm, you know, as a way to pretend it was Esau and he steals the inheritance. We see Rebecca, she was the general overseer of the cooking and all the deception. You see, Isaac as well, he had his favorite. [00:20:53] Speaker A: It just sounds in my ears like for all have sinned and fallen short [00:20:58] Speaker B: of the glory of God. [00:21:00] Speaker A: That's all that. [00:21:01] Speaker B: That story sounds like in my ears. And we see all the consequences there. So much that you see the scripture saying, don't be like Esau. Don't also Be like everything else. Keep being on that journey of saying God, who would you have me be of embracing also what Jesus Christ has done. [00:21:22] Speaker A: See, the point is, the point here [00:21:24] Speaker B: is that God has blessings in store for you, for me, for us. He has an inheritance that is greater than whatever it is that Isaac thought he wanted to give to Esau. And so for some of us who are like maybe Esau's hair, firstborns and even anybody, if you are ever wondering, [00:21:40] Speaker A: oh my, I didn't get all of [00:21:41] Speaker B: that or I don't even know what my life is going to, or what I'm going to get, you have a lot that you are about to get and that you have gotten. And I'll tell you that in a bit. There's no hero in Jacob, just in case you are wondering. No, there's no hero in Esau. [00:21:56] Speaker A: All broken people. [00:21:58] Speaker B: But God is after broken people and their salvation and restoration to Him. Deeply flawed, like you and I, like me, as you can see. But yet God's plan moves forward through deeply flawed people. If you look at the genealogy of Jesus, if you go to Matthew 1, I don't have time, but you know, I've gone deeper into all those people. But if you look at even Abraham, you know, it's a bit of lying to self preserve himself when he was with the king. And so this is not my wife, he's my sister, you know, just because he didn't want to die. And there was Isaac, of course, we all know that. Partial passive, you know, there's Jacob the deceiver, there is Judah on that genealogy [00:22:38] Speaker A: who betrayed his family. [00:22:39] Speaker B: Isn't it flawed to David, who despite how great he was, isn't it somehow he fell into the sin of adultery. We see that it happened, but somehow still on that list, even Solomon, even Tamar and Rahab. And please, this is not to justify any wrong living. This is not to make us think, oh, what we are doing or if we are not working right is good. [00:23:05] Speaker A: No, it is to say that the [00:23:06] Speaker B: Lord loves us, he saves us and he fulfills his plans irregardless of our failings. And so we should run to him [00:23:15] Speaker A: even more if we're desiring that his [00:23:17] Speaker B: plans come to pass in our lives. This is not a feel good moment in my preach. Thank you. It's not a feel good moment in the preach. It is not. It is actually a hopeful moment for our lives, those who we love and those who are yet to come in, that the predestined purposes of God can still come to pass in and through us all. So don't let your brokenness keep you away. Let it make you draw closer to God. He doesn't wait for perfect people to accomplish his purposes honestly. And I hope that your heart is beating as you hear me. He redeems broken people while they are still broken. Bible says in Romans 5, 8, it says, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. And he made our predestined life purposes. Purposes for us. So we see that the story of redemption moves forward not through perfect people, but through redeemed people. And that takes me to the last point. Our inheritance. The greater inheritance. Greater than what Jacob got. Greater than what Esau could have gotten. Greater, greater, greater. At the center of Genesis 25 is the idea of a birthright. That what is mine, you know. And sometimes we think that because of how we have lived our lives, we have lost our inheritance. We have lost what God planned for us. Or we have lost, you know, that future, you know, in heaven. Or we sometimes think that way. Esau sold his own. Jacob stole it. But the Bible keeps developing this story, this idea that the true inheritance of God's kingdom, the life eternal, the greater birthright which we see in full form in the New Testament through the death and the resurrection of Jesus Christ, even the ascension of Jesus Christ, because that was the completion, that those who believe in Christ receive a greater inheritance. It's why I'm here. It's why you are here. We have a greater inheritance because we believe in Christ. And is anybody here today who doesn't believe in Christ, I welcome you. I ask you to please believe in Christ. It's what gives you a far better life. Not just here, but even beyond here, where we know that we are going to dine and be with him, sing gloriously to him in heaven. So we see clearly that we have a greater inheritance through Christ Jesus. One that cannot be stolen, one that cannot be sold, one that cannot be lost because it's secure through what Jesus Christ did on the cross, once and for all, is sealed for us. And so in 1 Peter 1, 3, 4, we see clearly. [00:26:06] Speaker A: He's telling us, praise be to God [00:26:08] Speaker B: and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. In his great mercy, he has given us new birth into a living hope, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead and into an inheritance that can never perish, that can never spoil, that can never fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you. What good news? What good news other than that this inheritance is kept in heaven for you. Bible tells us in Galatians 3:29. It says, if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's seed and hairs according to the promise, the bigger promise, which is the one that Jesus came to fulfill. So this messy story of Jacob and Esau we have run through quickly, but it ultimately moves towards the arrival of Jesus. So God continues to progress that story, irregardless of the failings of the people, to make sure that the way I have said that Jesus will come, the plan for salvation and redemption that I have, it still happens. He continues to do it so that Jesus, the true heir, who shares his inheritance with us and calls us siblings, came to the scene, isn't it? And yes, we'll be celebrating Easter in a few, you know, maybe next week or in two weeks or three weeks. But then we see clearly that that's how God fulfilled the promise. And that's what has now made us co heirs with Jesus Christ family. If you have heard a lot today, I'll help you put it to one or two things. Esau traded an inheritance, Jacob stole it, but Jesus Christ, our God, secures an eternal inheritance for us. Amen. Genesis 25:27 reminds us that God's redemptive plan is not derailed by human weakness. That is a message that I want you to take away. That through flawed families, messy stories, the covenant line moves forward unto Jesus Christ, God to the sin, and through him the promise to Abraham. That's why we can say, father Abraham has many sons and his blessings are mine. Yes, the blessings to the nations and inheritance of God's kingdom becomes available to us. If the ban could come up, I'll be grateful. So these are the three things chosen. God's sovereign grace chooses and has chosen us. We're broken, humanity is flawed. [00:28:32] Speaker A: But yes, God is not holding back. [00:28:35] Speaker B: He's coming to us with his embrace. And why is he doing that? So that we can inherit the promise fulfilled in Christ. As we worship this morning, we are going to sing about the grace of God. Please remember that we were chosen, though broken, for an inheritance of grace that can never be lost. Amen. It.