25 27-34 How Can We Abuse The Blessings Of God
liberty bible church 4/20/08 P.M.
By Tom Zobrist
“how can we abuse the blessings of god?”
Genesis 25:27-34
introduction
Illus. of the Pope in the US addressed the issue of child abuse in the church, which has been widely publicized in recent years. Perhaps though what should be of greater concern is spiritual abuse in the church. READ excerpts from the article. Unfortunately, spiritual issues of value are often handled in an improper and even deceitful way by so-called spiritual people. They either don’t believe them and so treat them as if they have no value or use these spiritual things to serve their own selfish desires. When this happens, they are abusing the blessings of God. Is it possible for true believers to do this? If so, how?
OPEN to passage.
Prop. In this passage, we see how two men abuse the blessings of God.
Open in PRAYER.
PREVIEW the passage. Last week we saw the birth of Esau and Jacob. Tonight, we see them struggle with the blessings God had given them. First, let’s me these two brothers and answer the question…
i. who are the abusers? vs. 27-28
Who can fall into the rut of abusing the blessings of God? Illus. of Angelo Decapidafero asking me how I was treating the Lord, in relation to our quiet times. Anyone, believer and non-believer can abuse God when they treat His blessings with contempt. We see that here.
a. esau
V 27a 1. As they grew, even though they were twins, they were much different. It says that he was a “skillful hunter.” Literally a “man knowing game.” “A man of the field.” Esau was an outdoorsman. If he lived today, he would be a man’s man. His favorite store would be Gander Mountain. Now, being a hunter does not make Esau an abuser. What lead to his abusing the blessings of God was the fact that He was a Godless man. Cf. Heb. 12:16 In spite of this fact, he was favored by his father.
V 28a 2. Isaac loved Esau because he had a taste for meat. He loved the food that Esau brought home. He was a good hunter and he fed his father, so Isaac favored Esau. Illus. of when one child has something in common with one parent, they tend to be drawn to them. Esau had something in common with Isaac.
b. jacob
V 27b 1. In contrast to his brother, Jacob was a “mild” man, dwelling in the tents. Means complete, perfect; one who lacks nothing in physical strength, beauty, etc. an ordinary, quiet sort of person. While being all man, he didn’t have the same interests as his brother. He was created for something different. He did his hunting with his cunning rather than his bow and arrow. Because of this…
V 28b 2. Jacob was favored by his mother. Part of the reason she favored him may have been because of what God had said back when the boys were born. Cf. v 23 The other reason is that he probably spent more time with her than with her father. Some might call him a “Momma’s boy.” Whatever the case, both boys were abusers of God’s blessings in this case.
Trans. In our account tonight, Esau and Jacob are the abusers. Now, next is…
ii. what motivates the abusers? vs. 29-34
Illus. of Jim Bakkar. There are people that steal millions of dollars through ministries or thousands that sexually abuse their followers. What would motivate such selfish, abusive behavior?
a. the lust of the flesh
V 29 1. This shows the different ways these two different men filled their time. The outdoorsmen spent time in the field. That’s where he did his work. Jacob was in the tent, cooking some lentil soup, which is pretty good by the way, especially on the second day. Esau was tired. It had been a wearying day. Because he had to depend upon Jacob for food, many believe that he had scored no game on this trip. So, he was especially hungry with no prospects of eating soon. So, he begs his brother.
V 30 2. The stew had a reddish color and so he refers to it as red. Give me some red stew. Remember his descendants are called Edomites because they settled in an area previously called Seir, which is loosely connected to the name Esau. This is where the term Edomites comes from, because he asked for the red stew. Edom is similar to the word for red in Hebrew, Admoni, where we get Adam from. His family would always be reminded of his lustful abuse of God’s blessings. Jacob had…
b. the lust for power
V 31 1. Though Jacob had a struggle with being deceptive, here he is not. He is open and honest. You could say he was unscrupulous and cruel maybe, but not deceptive. In this case, he was a better hunter than his brother. But, he was a trapper. He baited his trap and now went for the kill.
2. As the firstborn, Esau was to have the blessings of the birthright. But, Jacob, perhaps knowing what God had said before they were born, decided to manipulate the situation and get it for himself, prematurely.
V 32 3. Abusing the blessing of God because of his lust for food, Esau saw no need for a birthright if he were dead. He was being overly dramatic here. He would not have died. He was trying to justify his abuse of God’s blessings.
V 33- 4. The deal is done. Jacob recognized the value of the birthright, but went about getting the blessings of God the
34 wrong way. Later, Jacob had to learn that God could fulfill promises without man’s manipulation and having to sin.
5. Esau became an example to all that it is wrong to sacrifice spiritually to satisfy physical lusts. He hated is birthright now because it was no good to him. He let his emotions get the best of him. He is seen being overly dramatic, acting as if he would faint and die if he didn’t get food now. He was the hunter, but in this case, he was the animal, trapped by the bait.
conclusion
Esau and Jacob both abused the blessings of God. One was Godless and traded spiritual blessings to fulfill the lusts of the flesh. The other was pursuing the right thing, the blessings of God, but was doing it the wrong way, using the methods of man. Both were abusers. How can this happen today? It will be clear in our points of application.
1. The Gospel should not be used to gain riches, land, or property. GOSPEL It is to provide eternal life, freely to all who believe in Jesus. It should not make the church rich.
2. It is ok to desire spiritual blessings, but we should not use the devices of the flesh to get them.
3. When one lives in the flesh, they will despise spiritual things.
Illus. of the Catholic Church has been the church of scandal in recent years. It could just as well be the Fundamental Latter Day Saints in West Texas, the televangelist from California, or the Bible church pastor on the corner. Whatever the case, we all need to be on guard. We can all abuse spiritual blessings.
1. We do it when we fail to love our wives.
2. We do it when we focus on the world over God.
3. We do it when we don’t preach the Bible and structure services to attract people rather than train God’s people to do the work of the ministry.
We are here to make disciples of all nations. We do it by trusting Jesus for salvation and for our daily needs; we do it by living holy lives and loving people; we do when we expose error and seek to good of all. If we make these our pursuits, we will never abuse the blessings of God.
pray
liberty bible church 4/20/08 P.M.
By Tom Zobrist
“how can we abuse the blessings of god?”
Genesis 25:27-34
introduction
Unfortunately, spiritual issues of value are often handled in an improper and even deceitful way by so-called spiritual people.
i. who are the abusers? vs. 27-28
Anyone, believer and non-believer can abuse God when they treat His blessings with _______________________.
a. esau
Cf. Heb. 12:16
b. jacob
ii. what motivates the abusers? vs. 29-34
a. the lust of the ___________________________________________
b. the lust for _______________________________________________
conclusion
How can this happen today?
1.
2.
3.