Sermon for Trinity Eleven – Sunday August 15, 2021
Calvary/Marquette ● Soli Deo Gloria

Grace be unto you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus, the Christ. Amen.

Genesis 25:21–34 (NKJV)
21 Now Isaac pleaded with the LORD for his wife, because she was barren; and the LORD granted his plea, and Rebekah his wife conceived. 22 But the children struggled together within her; and she said, “If all is well, why am I like this?” So she went to inquire of the LORD. 23 And 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 older shall serve the younger.”

24 So when her days were fulfilled for her to give birth, indeed there were twins in her womb. 25 And the first came out red. He was like a hairy garment all over; so they called his name Esau. 26 Afterward his brother came out, and his hand took hold of Esau’s heel; so his name was called Jacob. Isaac was sixty years old when she bore them.

27 So the boys grew. And Esau was a skillful hunter, a man of the field; but Jacob was a mild man, dwelling in tents. 28 And Isaac loved Esau because he ate of his game, but Rebekah loved Jacob.

29 Now Jacob cooked a stew; and Esau came in from the field, and he was weary. 30 And Esau said to Jacob, “Please feed me with that same red stew, for I am weary.” Therefore his name was called Edom.

31 But Jacob said, “Sell me your birthright as of this day.” 32 And Esau said, “Look, I am about to die; so what is this birthright to me?” 33 Then Jacob said, “Swear to me as of this day.” So he swore to him, and sold his birthright to Jacob. 34 And Jacob gave Esau bread and stew of lentils; then he ate and drank, arose, and went his way. Thus Esau despised his birthright.

In the Name of Jesus, the Christ,
Through whom God gives eternal life,
Dear Fellow Redeemed in His Precious Blood –

Technology makes our lives easier, right? Well, not always. We don’t always get ‘smarter’ with advances in technology and medicine…sometimes it just makes it easier to forget more basic and unchanging truths. We can become enamored with the new and forget the constant.

This past week I saw pictures of my nephew’s premature daughter, Lila Schaller. Lila was just 1lb, 2 oz. when she was born at 23 weeks, just halfway to full term (40 weeks). She now weighs 3lbs 2oz. and is improving at the MAYO Neo-natal Department in Rochester, MN.

God has certainly allowed for medical advancements that have made it possible for pre-born children to develop outside of the womb. What was unthinkable 50 years ago now can happen with some regularity! Amazing! We marvel at the medical advances…but just as quickly we forget that it is God who gives and sustains life. All the medical advances in the world would be useless if God doesn’t give life.

We can forget that it is God who approves the fertilization of every egg and grants life. If God doesn’t grant life…all the medical advances in the world can’t make life happen or prolong it when death comes.

It’s fine to marvel at medical advances, but let’s never forget that God gives and sustains life.

If there is any kernel of truth to be found in the account of Isaac’s sons Esau and Jacob it is this: God is Pro-Life! This isn’t some political statement, it’s a foundational truth of Scripture. God is Pro-Life: He gives life; He blesses Life; He promises Eternal Life.

May God the Holy Spirit bless our study of the Word of Truth this morning. Sanctify us by Your Truth, O Lord, Your Word is Truth. Amen.

+++++++

“Oh no, not again!”

I’m sure that as Isaac grew up under in the tent of Abraham and Sarah, he was told that he was a ‘miracle child’. After all, his mother had been barren and the time of womanhood passed, when the LORD first promised her that she would have a son and that from that son a great nation would arise including ultimately, the Promised Savior.
But, after 20 years of marriage, Isaac concluded that his wife Rebekah was also barren, unable to have children. Looking back on his family history, he might have thought:

“Oh no, not again!”

Isaac did what a child of God should do in every circumstance of life (cf. also 1 Thessalonians 5:16-17), He prayed:
21 Now Isaac pleaded with the LORD for his wife, because she was barren; and the LORD granted his plea, and Rebekah his wife conceived.

Human beings sometimes act as if they are in control of their lives. We will boldly plan out our lives, plan to do this and that and then when that is done something else. “After we get married, we will work for 10 years and then have children.” Well, from time to time, God reminds us that we aren’t pushing the buttons and flipping the switches. It was that way with Isaac and Rebekah.

God had promised that a great nation would rise from Isaac (Genesis 21:12). But after 20 years they remained childless. Did they think it a foregone conclusion? If they did, then perhaps they needed a reminder that It was up to God to keep His promise, it didn’t depend on them. Abraham and Sarah needed the reminder (Hagar!); and from time to time we need to be reminded that God gives life...we don’t simply manufacture it.

God did give life to Isaac and Rebekah in answer to their prayer...giving not just one, but two children. After God granted life to Isaac and Rebekah, something didn’t seem right, and Rebekah did what her husband had done, she prayed:

22 But the children struggled together within her; and she said, “If all is well, why am I like this?” So she went to inquire of the LORD. 23 And 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 older shall serve the younger.”

God didn’t only give life, He did so with the goal of blessing those lives. Rebekah was concerned about the ‘struggle’ going on within her between her two children. The LORD revealed that her two children would become two peoples, two nations. God hadn’t merely given life to one couple, but through them to countless couples, descendants who would become the nations of Israel and Edom.

God still blesses life. God has plans for every life, and while he doesn’t often reveal those plans beforehand (as He did in this case), we can be certain that He still does. He gives life with the purpose of blessing and sustaining life. God doesn’t only enable people to ‘be fruitful and multiply’ He also supports the lives that He gives. This is just one of the reasons that we – as God’s people – strive to defend life, especially the life of the unborn.

God also revealed that – contrary to the accepted social order – the older son would serve the younger. It was socially accepted in those days that the oldest son would be given the birthright, and God would later support that same idea among the Israelites (Deuteronomy 21:15-17).

In this case, it would be different. God had chosen to bless the younger. He would be the one through whom the Savior would come. So long before either boy was born, before either had done good or evil, God chose to bless both, the younger to a greater extent.

Why? It is God’s prerogative to bless whom He will bless in the fashion He will bless them. This too serves as a reminder to us that God deals according to grace, not works. He doesn’t bless merely according to nature or social order, but in accord with His own will and grace.

In the letter to the Romans, the Spirit of God makes reference to this Scripture to remind us that it is God’s decision to make! He chose to bless Jacob before Esau. He chose to bless you as His own child, but not because of something in you, but a quality in Him, namely His Grace.

So, it is written (Romans 9:10-16):

“...when Rebecca also had conceived by one man, even by our father Isaac 11 (for the children not yet being born, nor having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works but of Him who calls), 12 it was said to her, “The older shall serve the younger.” 13 As it is written, “Jacob I have loved, but Esau I have hated.” 14 What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? Certainly not! 15 For He says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whomever I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whomever I will have compassion.” 16 So then it is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who shows mercy.

Even as we may think of children as something of our making (when it is God who gives life) so also, we may think of our faith and the salvation that comes to us through it in the same way! The truth is that God chose us of His grace and mercy, not because of anything in us. The credit goes – to God who grants spiritual life – not to the person who desires it or reaches out for it.

God also gave gifts and abilities to Isaac and Rebekah’s children.

24 So when her days were fulfilled for her to give birth, indeed there were twins in her womb. 25 And the first came out red. He was like a hairy garment all over; so they called his name Esau. 26 Afterward his brother came out, and his hand took hold of Esau’s heel; so his name was called Jacob. Isaac was sixty years old when she bore them. 27 So the boys grew. And Esau was a skillful hunter, a man of the field; but Jacob was a mild man, dwelling in tents. 28 And Isaac loved Esau because he ate of his game, but Rebekah loved Jacob.

In this case, the Spirit of God allows us to be present at the birth of Isaac and Rebekah’s sons. No doubt it was an exciting time in Isaac’s tent.

 ESAU -- The firstborn son came out RED, which may refer to his complexion or the color of his hair. Since the child was covered in hair like a garment, they named him Esau, which means ‘hairy.’ He wasn’t the only child to be born.

 JACOB -- The second twin wasn’t far behind, born hanging on to his brother’s heel. Since the child was born hanging on to his brother’s heel, they named him Jacob, which means ‘heel-holder’ or ‘supplanter.’

Consequently, because God supported their lives, both boys grew up together and developed the gifts and abilities given them by God. They were twins but they developed very different traits, almost opposites:

 HUNTER/OUTDOORSMAN – Esau became a man of the field, a hunter. He loved the outdoors and spent his time pursuing wild game. We might say that Esau was ‘a man’s man.’ If we met him, it would be around a campfire.

 MILD/INDOORSMAN – Jacob is described as a ‘mild man’ – but that doesn’t mean he was weak. The word ‘mild’ can mean anything from well-behaved and civilized to upright and even righteous. He wasn’t a pale skinned wimp, but like most other nomads.

God gave each boy life and gifts and abilities and they grew up. Unfortunately, we are also told that each parent – both Isaac and Rebekah had a favorite. We are told that Isaac loved Esau (because of the wild game he brought home) and Rebekah loved Jacob.

Isaac’s boys were blessed and God made plans to give them much more than life, gifts and abilities. God is Pro-Life because He desires that every human being given life be saved for eternal life apart from sin with Him. God also promises eternal life.
It is for this reason that God also promised Grandpa Abraham and Father Isaac that the Promised Savior, the Christ, would come from their relatives, from their family.

It is also evident that none of the persons of their little family – were perfect. They were all sinful human beings and are revealed as such in Scripture. They could all be callous and conniving, as this brief account reveals:

29 Now Jacob cooked a stew; and Esau came in from the field, and he was weary. 30 And Esau said to Jacob, “Please feed me with that same red stew, for I am weary.” Therefore his name was called Edom.

31 But Jacob said, “Sell me your birthright as of this day.” 32 And Esau said, “Look, I am about to die; so what is this birthright to me?” 33 Then Jacob said, “Swear to me as of this day.” So he swore to him, and sold his birthright to Jacob. 34 And Jacob gave Esau bread and stew of lentils; then he ate and drank, arose, and went his way. Thus Esau despised his birthright.

Esau returned home from roaming the fields in search of game. Jacob had boiled up some red beans or lentils into a stew of sorts. Esau was famished and asked to eat some of the reddish colored stew (later his descendants were called Edom, which means ‘red’ and reminded of the lentil stew).

Jacob took the opportunity to get Esau to sell him his birthright. Instead of offering his hungry brother something to eat, he suggested that he buy it from him. It would only cost him his firstborn status.

Esau despised his birthright – including the promise of the Savior attached to it – and gave it all up for a bowl of beans. He chose the present over eternal life! This was no minor indiscretion.

Now we may be tempted to stand in judgment of both Esau and Jacob.

 ESAU – On the one hand, it’s tempting to think self-righteously, “I would never despise the Promise of God, especially if it meant being a part of the family of the Promised Savior!” I would never make earthly things more important than those that are spiritual and eternal – and yet we have.

 JACOB – On the other hand, it’s tempting to look at the actions of Jacob and say, “I’d never try and cheat my brother out of something like he did.” Shame, shame, both of you boys!
The problem is that we too have a sinful nature. There is often a little ‘Esau’ or a little ‘Jacob’ in each one of us.

 Materialism -- We are tempted every day – living in the richest country in the world – to devote our time to the things of this life, like putting food on the table, a roof overhead, and fixing the TV before the football season begins. There are lots of people making a good living today, but if doing so pushes the things of God to the backseat...we’ve made the same mistake that Esau did! We are choosing the stew for the body and neglecting food for the soul.

The writer to the Hebrews warns us about the attitudes that can make us little Esau’s, saying (Hebrews 12:14-17):

14 Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord: 15 looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled; 16 lest there be any fornicator or profane person like Esau, who for one morsel of food sold his birthright. 17 For you know that afterward, when he wanted to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no place for repentance, though he sought it diligently with tears.

 Self-Centeredness – We are also tempted like Jacob to take on the prevailing attitude in our society today: “What’s in it for me?” When someone has a need, seek to provide it if you can, don’t first concern yourself with being repaid. Worse yet, Jacob had already been promised by GOD that the birthright would be his and his brother would serve him, still He tried to make that happen instead of trusting God to do what He said!! There are also times when we doubt God’s promises and go our own way, refusing to wait on God’s grace and faithfulness.

It’s a good thing that GOD is Pro-life. If he wasn’t, none of us would be here! For while we see here the sin of humankind, we are also reminded of the grace of God.

Don’t forget --

Isaac was alive because God was gracious to his 90-year-old mother, Sarah, and granted her a child as promised.
Isaac was alive because God stayed Abraham’s hand and provided His own sacrifice.
Esau and Jacob were alive because God was gracious and overcame the barrenness of Rebekah.

John the Baptist prepared the way before the Savior...because God was gracious and gave barren and aging Elizabeth a child.
Jesus was born of a virgin, grew up, lived, died and rose again – for you – because God is gracious.

God gave you life...and then gave you more. He saw to it that you came to know and believe in His Son. He granted you the new birth in baptism and has sustained your faith through His Word. It wasn’t merely your parents diligent work that resulted in your faith in Jesus, but God’s amazing grace.

God did this – because He is Pro-Life.

Praise him for His Work in us and often despite us.
Amen.