Life is full of hard choices between less than perfect alternatives. Today on Truth Matters with Dr. Cheryl Davis, she continues her series, Despising Your Birthright, the story of Rebecca and her two sons Esau and Jacob. Dr. Davis examines the difference between the two brothers with their character traits being both good and bad, and how God is faced with choosing between two combinations and choosing the one that would be best for the leadership of His people. He will always choose the stronger, the mightier, the smartest, or the greater, but chooses the one that He will transform and anoint for His purposes. Here's Dr. Davis, whom God calls He will also equip.
I'm Dr. Cheryl Davis. On my last episode, I spoke to you about Rebecca, wife of Isaac and mother of twin sons Esau and Jacob. Today we go back to Genesis 25 and pick up at verse 23, Rebecca's prayer. The Lord said to her, Two nations are in your womb. Two peoples shall be separated from your body. One people shall be stronger than the other, and the other shall serve the younger.
This is a startling revelation to Rebecca, as it was contrary to Middle Eastern custom. The birthright of any child always went to the eldest son in the family, in this case Esau and not Jacob. The father was always bestowed this blessing upon the eldest son before his death.
This custom is the premise in the New Testament of the firstborn. Normally the eldest son was given preferential treatment as he would inherit his father's position and possessions. He assumed more responsibility and was rewarded with honor and given two shares in the family inheritance instead of the single share that each of the younger brothers received. Occasionally, the eldest son fell out of favor and was replaced by a younger son, a brother.
There are many examples of this in the Old Testament. Jacob replaces Esau. Ephraim replaced Manasseh. Joseph replaced Reuben. Thus the younger brother became the firstborn.
He attained the first rank. We all know that the promise was reconciled through the firstborn, which was Isaac, but then was reconciled through Jacob instead of Esau. The story moves on along in verse 24. So when her days were fulfilled for her to give birth, indeed there were twins in her womb.
And the first came out red. He was like a hairy garment all over, so they called his name Esau. Afterward his brother came out, and his hand took hold of Esau's heel, so his name was called Jacob. The boys then grew, and Esau was a skillful hunter, a man of the field. But Jacob was a mild man, dwelling in tents, and Isaac loved Esau because he ate of his game, but Rebekah loved Jacob. Here I would like to focus on the difference between the two sons at birth.
This entrance into the world is very prophetic as to the foretelling of the story of their lives. Esau was red and hairy as if he had already been a grown man. This was an indication of a very strong constitution and gave calls to expect that he would be a very robust, daring, and active man.
But Jacob was smooth and tender as other children. They were very different in their temperament as well. Esau was a man for this world. He was a man addicted to sports, for he was a cunning hunter. He was a man of the field like Nimrod and Ishmael. Jacob was a man for the other world.
He was not cut out for a statesman, nor did he look great, but he was a plain man dwelling in tents and was a herdsman. We see the difference between Esau and Jacob at birth and during their lives. Esau was a man of the world, while Jacob dwelled among tents and was the lesser or weaker of the two. One would ask the question, why did God choose Jacob knowing that he grabbed the heel of his brother at birth and was a trickster? We find the answer in 1 Corinthians chapter 1 verse 26 and 27. For you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble are called, but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty.
Many mighty men of God in the Bible were shepherds just like Jacob, Abraham, Moses, and David to name a few. If we look at whom he calls based on qualifications, we would rely on our own qualifications to do the work. Mark Patterson says in his book Not Safe, God doesn't do what God does because of us.
God does what God does in spite of us. I'm Dr. Cheryl Davis and this has been Truth Matters, reminding you that truth never changes. So build your life on knowing the truth.
It is a solid foundation that will not wash away. From our lesson today, we have learned that God often chooses people who are flawed, weak, broken, and those who have messed up the most in life to use for His purposes. There is no person in all of history that God cannot transform into a new person as He did Jacob if they are willing. Dr. Davis would like to help you connect with God and find this new life in Jesus. You can email her at CherylDavis at ProjectTruthMatters.com or connect with her on Facebook at Truth Matters with Dr. Cheryl Davis. Please join Dr. Davis for our next broadcast on Esau and Jacob, the father of two nations. This has been a production of the Truth Project.
Whisper: medium.en / 2023-11-25 07:24:52 / 2023-11-25 07:27:22 / 3
