BIRTHRIGHT
INTRODUCTION
A. HUMOR: DOG DECEIVED
1. Two friends run into each other while walking their dogs. One suggests lunch. The other says, "They won't let us in a restaurant with pets."
2. Undeterred, the first guy and his German shepherd head into the restaurant. The maître d' stops them, saying, "Sir, you can't bring your dog in here."
3. "But I'm blind," the man replies, "and this is my guide dog." The maître d', apologizing profusely, shows both man and dog to a table.
4. His friend waits five minutes, then tries the same routine. "You have a Chihuahua for a guide dog?" the skeptical maître d' says.
5. "A Chihuahua?" the man says. "Is that what they gave me?"
B. TEXTS
Gen. 25:31; “Jacob replied, ‘First sell me your birthright.’”
Deut. 21:16; “Then it shall be, when he makes his sons to inherit that which he has, that he may not make the son of the beloved firstborn before the son of the hated, which is indeed the firstborn.”
2 Chr. 21:3; “Their father had given them many gifts of silver and gold and articles of value, as well as fortified cities in Judah, but he had given the kingdom to Jehoram because he was his firstborn son.”
Heb. 12:16; “Lest there be any fornicator, or profane person, as Esau, who for one morsel of meat sold his birthright.”
C. THESIS
1. We’re going to look at what a Birthright is, how it relates to God’s Kingdom, and how it makes us “More than Conquerors.”
2. The title of this message is “Birthright.”
I. WHAT IS A BIRTHRIGHT?
A. BIRTHRIGHT DEFINED: “a right, privilege, or possession to which a person is entitled by birth.” [Merriam-Webster]
B. AREAS THIS ENCOMPASSES:
1. Inheritance – property, money, estates,
2. Royal positions – Kings, Princes, Marquis, Earls, Dukes, Barons, Viscounts, etc.
3. Citizenship – Roman or U.S. Citizenship;
4. Ownership
5. Fame – children of famous people. Of Martin Luther King, Reagan, Winston Churchill, Tom Cruise, Sam Walton, Napoleon, etc.
6. Seats at Ivy League schools, operas, churches, etc.
7. Lineage, connection to ancestors and other relations.
C. FAIRNESS OF BIRTHRIGHT
1. None of what is received was earned by the heir.
2. Entitlements. Achievements of those before, are passed down to heirs, often times to profligate and worthless individuals, who don’t know what it means to work because they’ve never had to, and often squander what they get.
3. It seems unfair, but is universally recognized.
4. There’s no work, but simply a gift from one generation of a family to another generation of the family. How can this be right?
5. BECAUSE THE ONE WHO ACHIEVED IT LIVES ON IN THE HEIR – GENETICALLY. PART OF THE PARENT SURVIVES IN THE CHILD. The LIFE of one is passed on and is antecedent to the other. The child would have no life without the genes of the parent, so the descendant gets to enjoy the fruits of the earlier life, whom it replaced.
II. BIRTHRIGHT & THE KINGDOM OF GOD
Nowhere is all this more true than in the Kingdom of God. The Kingdom is only for those who are born to it. You must be born again. The fruits of Christ our forebear are accrued to us.
1. His Riches;
2. His Titles;
3. His Status;
4. His Possessions;
5. His Privileges, are all ours!
A. CONNECTION TO HIM AS PARENT
1. What we receive is not the product of work, but only of receiving. How is all this possible? Because His life is inside us!
2. He lives in us. His spiritual genetic pattern/ overcoming nature is in us.
3. So He is really only inheriting what is His own (since He is risen & lives in us) and we get to share it with Him!
B. HOW SHOULD THIS EFFECT US?
1. We should see from where our victory flows and let him predominate.
2. We should reckon that we’re in the world but not of it. We’re of a different nature; we’re children of God.
3. We shouldn’t hold onto the things of this world; it’s passing away.
4. We should conform to His nature.
5. Since this status can be gained by all – we should endeavor to help all mortals achieve immortality.
6. Because of what Christ did, you never have to be worthy. It’s a free gift; you can never merit it. If you’re a child, then you’re an heir. All that is His is yours, for he lives in you!
7. We should expect to have special trials as part of our upbringing. We are being prepared for great responsibilities in His future kingdom.
III. BIRTHRIGHT = "MORE THAN CONQUERORS"
“No, in all these things we are more than conquerors
through Him that loved us.” Romans 8:37
A. EXAMPLES OF “MORE THAN CONQUERORS”
1. If Moses had led an army back to Egypt and overcome Pharaoh and his army, Moses would have been a conqueror. But the fact that Moses returned only with a staff and utterly destroyed Pharaoh and his army makes him more than a conqueror!
2. If Gideon had kept his 32,000 men and defeated the Midianites he would have been a conqueror. But that he defeated them with 300 men and his weapons were a trumpet, a light, and a jar makes him much more than a conqueror.
3. David, as an adolescent, had never fought in mortal combat. Goliath was already a champion and had killed many men. The fact that David could overwhelm and kill Goliath made him more than a conqueror!
4. You know, when the 3 Hebrew men went into a burning, fiery furnace, they were conquerors. But when the form of the fourth, like unto the Son of God, came and they walked out, they were MORE THAN CONQUERORS.
5. When Daniel went into the lion's den, he was a conqueror of lions. But when they pulled him out and the King made his universal degree of Yahweh’s greatness, he was more than a conqueror: Conqueror of the King!
B. THE GREATEST CONQUEROR: JESUS CHRIST
THE CONTRADICTORY DESCRIPTION:
1. Though crucified on Golgotha’s lonely hill, beaten beyond recognition, suspended between two thieves, forsaken by His disciples – this Jesus because of His divine nature – became Victor over death, hell, and the grave!.
2. The Apostle John saw the Risen Christ so huge He held 12 stars in this hand. “When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. Then he placed his right hand on me and said: "Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last. I am the Living One; I was dead, and behold I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades!” (Rev. 1:17-18).
IV. IMPLICATIONS OF OUR BIRTHRIGHT
A. WE ARE NOT STILL HELPLESS AGAINST TEMPTATION
1. Some try to hide behind their previous “weakness” to deliberately sin. Paul says, “Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body... you used to be slaves to sin.... You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness" Rom. 6:12, 17-18.
2. The apostle John goes a step further and says, "No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God's seed remains in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of God" 1 John 3:9.
3. We have a new nature. We don’t have to sin any more. To be tempted is not sin. If we do sin, we should confess our sins (1 John 1:9-10). We are BORN DELIVERED!
B. WE ARE NOT DEFENSELESS AGAINST THE DEVIL
1. Not only are we NOT under the devil’s dominion any longer, now HE’S UNDER US IN CHRIST!
2. Jesus said, "I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you” Luke 10:18-19.
3. We’re to put on the Armor of God and take up the Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God, and go into battle and defeat our former oppressors. Our new job is to set other captives free. We have weapons of power at our disposal.
4. Even the Hindu, Mahatma Gandhi, rebuked Christians for their lack of taking spiritual ground; "You Christians have in your keeping a document with enough dynamite in it to blow the whole of civilization to bits; to turn society upside down; to bring peace to this war-torn world. But you read it [and treat it] as if it were just good literature, and nothing else." God forbid we should not take our place in the battle!
C. WE ARE VICTORS AND CONQUERORS!
1. We have the nature of winners; but you still must PLAY TO WIN! No Olympian ever got there by accident. You will never win without intending to do so. Paul tells us to go into "strict training" (1 Cor. 9:25).
2. How?
a. Cultivate your relationship with God thru Prayer.
b. Read the Word.
c. Go to Church. Aim to be a leader.
d. Witness.
3.SCRIPTURES:
a. “No weapon that is formed against you shall prosper (Isa. 54:17)!
b. “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you” (James 4:7).
c. “Greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world” (1 John 4:4).
d. “Be not afraid…for the battle is not yours, but God’s” (2 Chron. 20:15).
CONCLUSION
A. ILLUSTRATION
1. While on a recent trip to New Zealand, Rob Chaffart encountered an unusual species of birds, the Myna. It wasn't their appearance that attracted us to them, rather, their kamikaze tactics. They would fly to the road surface, just in front of us, and touch down. Then, at the very moment that we might crush them with our wheels, they would run, full-speed, to the side of the road. They were so fast that there was absolutely no time to stop.
2. Each time they’d pull off a successful kamikaze, they would look up at you with those beady eyes, and you would swear they were snickering! It's a game for these birds! Kind of like Russian Roulette!
3. Too often we, too, play a similar kamikaze game – flirting with our favorite pet sin. Our reasoning? "Come on! It won't hurt!", "I'm over this!" Or "I want to see if I have really overcome this!"
4. It may be a cigarette, a beer, a man or a woman, or for others, it may be the Internet. Taking chances never leads to victory. Esau took chances and forfeited his birthright!
5. Instead, like Joseph, we should be running away from it! Or like Lord Jesus, say, “Away from me Satan!”
6. "The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ" (2 Cor. 10:4-6 NIV).
B. ALTAR CALL
1. It is time we acted like Soldiers of Christ and not let ourselves be fooled by the thoughts originating from the enemy! It is time we learn to say "NO!!!" to the evil one. It is time we learn how to make the devil flee! In Jesus' name, "Away from me, Satan!" It is time we claim victory in Jesus.
2. "IS YOUR GOD ABLE TO DELIVER YOU?" Some people’s God is not able to deliver them, because they're God isn't big enough to command their obedience. How big is your God?
3. How many would say, “I’m struggling with something?” It might be fear, loneliness, depression, some temptation or sickness.
4. How many would say, “I need prayer?” Come to the front and we’re going to join together in prayer for you.
