Just a year ago (on September 16, 2009), an article in The Washington Post began with these words: “The king folds her own laundry, chauffeurs herself around Washington in a 1992 Honda, and answers her own phone. Her boss’s phone, too.” The article was about Peggielene Bartels, a secretary in the Ghanian embassy in Washington for 30 years. She grew up in Otuam, Ghana, a small city of about 7,000 before she came to the United States.
Then 30 years later, when the 90-year-old king of Otuam, Ghana, died, the elders performed an ancient ritual to determine the next king. They prayed and poured schnapps on the ground while they read the names of the king’s 25 relatives. When steam rose from the schnapps on the ground, the name that they were reading at that moment would be the new king – and that’s exactly what happened when they read Peggielene’s name.
So now Peggielene is a king! In Ghana, she has a driver and a chef and an eight-bedroom palace (though it needs repairs). She has power to resolve disputes, appoint elders, and manages more than 1,000 acres of family-owned land. “I’m a big-time king, you know,” she told the reporter. When she returned for her coronation, they carried her through the streets on a litter, and she even wore a heavy gold crown.
Paul Schwartzman, the reporter, wrote, “In the humdrum of ordinary life, people periodically yearn for something unexpected, some kind of gilded escape, delivered, perhaps, by an unanticipated inheritance or a winning lottery ticket.” Well, Peggielene got the unexpected. (Paul Schwartzman, “Secretary by Day, Royalty by Night,” The Washington Post, 9-16-09; www.PreachingToday.com)
In so many words, that describes the condition of every believer in Jesus Christ. In the humdrum of ordinary life, we got the unexpected; we became kings in God’s Kingdom when we trusted Christ to save us from our sins. And by right of our new birth in Christ, we gained power and privileges that no one else has. Yet so few of us actually enjoy or utilize those privileges.
You say, “Phil, I want to utilize my privileges as a king in God’s Kingdom. How can I do that?” Well, if you have your Bibles, I invite you to turn with me to Genesis 25, Genesis 25, where we have the story of Esau, who had power and privilege in his family, but traded it all away for a bowl of stew.
Genesis 25:27-34 The boys grew up, and Esau became a skillful hunter, a man of the open country, while Jacob was a quiet man, staying among the tents. Isaac, who had a taste for wild game, loved Esau, but Rebekah loved Jacob. Once when Jacob was cooking some stew, Esau came in from the open country, famished. He said to Jacob, “Quick, let me have some of that red stew! I’m famished!” (That is why he was also called Edom.) Jacob replied, “First sell me your birthright.” “Look, I am about to die,” Esau said. “What good is the birthright to me?” But Jacob said, “Swear to me first.” So he swore an oath to him, selling his birthright to Jacob. 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. (NIV)
He considered it worthless.
ESAU SOLD HIS BIRTHRIGHT.
He traded something of great value for a bowl of stew! You see, as the first-born son in his family, Esau was entitled to special privileges; but when he sold his birthright, he gave up those privileges.
1st, he gave up the privelege of being a priest. The first-born son was especially consecrated (or given-over) to God. In families that didn’t know the Lord, they carried this to the extreme and often sacrificed their first-born sons to their pagan gods. But in Esau’s family, a good Jewish family, the first-born would be given to God to serve Him. He would have the privilege of representing his family before God as the priest of the family. Later on, that privilege would be transferred to the tribe of Levi in Israel (Numbers 3). But in Esau’s day, the priesthood still belonged to the first-born. So when Esau sold his birthright, he gave up the priesthood.
More than that, he gave up a double portion of his father’s estate. When the father’s estate was divided among the sons, the first-born usually got twice as much as the rest of his brothers. For example, if there were 2 sons, the estate would be divided in thirds. The youngest would get one-third, and the eldest would get two-thirds. If there were 3 sons, the estate would be divided into fourths. The younger two would get one-fourth each, and the eldest would get two-fourths. And so on... The first-born’s birthright included a double portion of the estate.
Now, for Esau, this estate included all of the Promised Land, the land promised by God to Abraham, Isaac, & their descendants. But in Esau’s time, it was still only a promise. The only piece of land his father owned was a graveyard. All he had was a promise from God that he would get a whole lot more someday. And for a man like Esau, that promise didn’t mean a whole lot. So when Esau sold his birthright, he gave up the priesthood; he gave up the promises of God.
And 3rdly, he gave up his power. He gave up his authority as head of the whole family. You see, in his father’s absence, the first-born son had authority over his younger siblings. But with that authority came the responsibility to provide for his mother till her death, and for his unmarried sisters until they got married. That’s probably why he got a double portion of the estate – so he could provide for his mother and sisters.
Esau had it all! As the first-born, he had the power; he had the promises of God; and he had the priesthood. And yet he traded it all away for a bowl of stew. After all, of what use was the priesthood for a man like Esau? What would he want with some unfulfilled promises? & Why would a man like Esau care about the authority and responsibility of providing for his mother?
He was hungry, and he needed something to feed his face. He valued only the momentary pleasure of a full belly, so he gave up something of infinite value for a bowl of stew. Esau sold his birthright. Now, don’t you do the same.
DON’T SELL YOUR BIRTHRIGHT like Esau did.
Don’t trade away your privileges for momentary pleasures. Don’t exchange something of infinite value for cheap thrills. For, you see, every believer in Christ has a birthright. Every believer in Christ has special privileges, because they are considered “firstborn” sons of God.
If you have your Bibles, I invite you to turn with me to Hebrews 12, Hebrews 12, where we have the New Testament commentary on this passage in Genesis.
Hebrews 12:14-17 Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many. See that no one is sexually immoral, or is godless like Esau, who for a single meal sold his inheritance rights as the oldest son. Afterward, as you know, when he wanted to inherit this blessing, he was rejected. He could bring about no change of mind, though he sought the blessing with tears. (NIV)
Like Esau, we as God’s children have certain “inheritance rights.” I.e., Like Esau, we have the right of the priesthood; we have the right of the promises of God; and we have the right of power and authority. But the Bible warns us here in verse 16, “See that no one…is godless like Esau, who for a single meal sold his inheritance rights.” My dear believing friends: Please don’t sell your inheritance rights.
1st of all, DON’T SELL YOUR PRIESTHOOD.
Don’t trade your opportunity for direct access to God for momentary pleasures. For just like the 1st-born in ancient society, we have been set apart wholly for God’s service and use; we have been especially consecrated and given over to him. Every believer has! That’s what the word “holiness” means in vs.14. It means to be set-apart from sin unto God. That’s our position in Christ. God looks on those of us who have trusted Christ as “holy ones,” as “those who have been set-apart for His special use” (1 Corinthians 1:2; 6:9-11). Otherwise, according to verse 14, we would never be able to see him! The moment we put our trust in Christ, God made us holy in His eyes.
That’s our position in Christ, But that’s not always our practice, is it? That’s why verse 14 says, “Make every effort…to be holy.” In other words, you ARE set apart for God’s special use. Now, learn to behave like it.
A university football coach went out to practice one Monday with his 1st & 3rd string quarterbacks out with injuries. The big game was coming up Saturday, and he had to "make do" with his 2nd, 4th, and 5th string quarterbacks.
In the first five minutes of practice, his 2nd string quarterback (who had become his 1st string) hurt his knee. That elevated the the 4th stringer to the 1st string and put the 5th stringer on the 2nd team.
About 10 minutes later, the 4th stringer (who had become 1st string) hurt his knee. That left the 5th stringer next in line for the 1st team.
The coach blew the whistle and gathered all the players around him. He took the one remaining quarterback, put his arm around him, and said in his gruff voice, “Son, do you believe in magic?”
The quarterback replied in a half-hearted way, “Well, sorta.”
The coach looked at him, pointed his five fingers at him like a magician and said, “Poof! You are now a 1st-string quarterback.”
And it was true! No magic to it at all. That was his position, but in practice he had a long way to go. And the coach only had a week to get him in shape.
That’s the way it is with those of us who have trusted Christ. We have a 1st-string position on God’s team. But in practice we have a long way to go. The only difference is that God will take a life-time to get us in shape. We are set-apart for God’s special use. We are all priests to the living God – all of us who have trusted Christ.
Please, don’t sell out on that privilege. Don’t trade it in for the momentary pleasures of this world. Instead, Make every effort…to be holy, verse 14 says. In other words, let Christ our Coach get us in shape for our position on God’s team.
That means we’re going to have to engage in some spiritual disciplines. We’re going to have to spend some time reading the playbook of God’s Word and talking to the Coach in prayer. And we’re going to have to practice with “the team” (i.e., the church) on a regular basis.
All this gets us ready to be used of God in significant ways, but how often do we trade these things in to sleep in on a Sunday morning or to eat out on a Saturday night and miss church? How often do we exchange the privilege of prayer and Bible study for a busy life pursuing stuff which has no lasting satisfaction?
Please don’t do it! Don’t sell your birthright for a “bowl of stew,” so to speak. I.e., Don’t sell your priesthood.
And 2nd, DON’T SELL THE PROMISES OF GOD.
Don’t trade your right to discover and enjoy all that God has promised you for the cheap thrills of this world. For just like the 1st-born in ancient society, we too have an inheritance! And just like it did for Esau, that inheritance includes the promises of God.
They’re promises given to us purely out of grace. We don’t deserve them, but God delights in making promises to us, simply because He loves us. That’s why verse 15 says, “See to it that no one misses the grace of God.” In other words, don’t fail to claim God’s gracious promises for yourselves. Don’t fail to trust God to keep His word in your life.
All of us come short of the glory of God – none of us are perfect. But none of us need to come short of the grace of God – no one needs to miss out on enjoying His promises; and yet, so many of us do.
Years ago, an old Native American, half naked and starving, wandered into a western settlement. He was begging for food to keep from starving to death. The townspeople graciously gave him some bread, and as he devoured it someone noticed a pouch hanging around the Native American’s neck. It was a small, dirty pouch attached with a brightly colored ribbon.
The Native American explained that it was a charm given to him in his younger days. He opened the pouch and displayed a faded, greasy paper. One of the townspeople picked it up and discovered that it was a regular discharge from the Federal Army! It was signed by General George Washington himself, and it entitled the bearer to a pension for life.
Do you know, that’s the way some of us believers treat the promises of God. We hang them around their necks or on our walls in beautiful plaques, but we fail to claim those promises for themselves. And so we walk around in spiritual poverty most of our lives, not knowing how rich we really are.
God has given us a rich inheritance in His promises. As I said last week, there are thousands and thousands of them, and they cover every area of our lives; they take care of every need; they are our birthright as God’s children.
But some believers ignore those promises, or they don’t even take the time to discover what they are. In essence, they have sold those promises for other pursuits which have far less value.
My dear friends, please don’t sell your birthright. I.e., Don’t sell your priesthood. Don’t sell the promises of God.
And 3rd, DON’T SELL YOUR POWER as a child of God.
Don’t trade your spiritual authority for the short-lived pleasure of sin. For just like the 1st-born in ancient society, God has given us authority. He has given us power over sin. He has given us the ability to keep the bitter root of sin from taking hold in our hearts. That’s why verse 15 says, “See to it…that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many.”
You see, we don’t have to let sin spring up in our lives like a bitter root. Instead, when we sin, all we need to do is confess it and forsake it. Admit it and turn away from it before it takes root in our lives and destroys not only us, but hurts those around us.
Matt Woodley, of Chicago, Illinois, talks about Steve, a friend of his, who nearly destroyed himself with such a bitter root.
Nineteen years previously, a guy stole Steve’s wife away from him, got married, and moved to Florida while Steve’s life unraveled. After he was arrested for assaulting a police officer, the guy who stole his wife smirked through the entire court hearing. When Steve was convicted, the guy flipped him the finger.
Nineteen years later, Steve told his friend, Matt, “I’ve hated him for nineteen years. He’s coming up here next week, I have a 32-caliber pistol strapped around my ankle, and when I see him I will kill him.” Then he chillingly concluded, “I’ve thought all about it. I’m 63-years-old. I will get a life sentence, but I’ll also get free medical and dental and a warm bed and three meals a day. All of this bitterness and resentment feels so right; forgiveness seems weird.”
After Steve related his story, Matt paused for a long time before he finally stammered, “Well, I guess it doesn’t matter if you go to jail, because you’re already in jail. The guy who stole your wife and smirked at your hearing isn’t in jail. You are. That guy is free, but you’re a prisoner of your own hate; and you’re slowly killing yourself. And unless you forgive, you’ll remain trapped for the rest of your life.”
A week later Steve called Matt and said, “You know, I get your point. I put the gun away. I don’t want to spend the rest of my life in jail or enslaved to my own hate. Will you pray for me that Jesus will release me?” (Matt Woodley, Chicago, Illinois, www.PreachingToday.com)
The good news is Jesus has already released us from the power of sin in our lives through His death on the cross. As we depend on Him, we don’t need to let bitterness, or anger, or worry, or any other sin take root in our lives and do so much damage. Specifically, verse 16 says we don’t have to let things like “sexual immorality” ruin our lives.
We can turn from sin, because God has given us the power and the authority to do so. No believer in Christ needs to be a victim any longer; and yet, so many believers trade that power for a poisonous pleasure that is not worth the pain it brings in the end.
Please don’t do it! Don’t sell your birthright, like Esau did. Don’t sell your priesthood. Don’t sell the promises of God, and don’t sell your power over sin. Instead, enjoy your inheritance rights as children of God, and live like the kings you are!
