When Good Desires Become Idols, Part 2 - Treasures of Faith - Week 5 Day 6

TODAY'S TREASURE

When he (Esau) wanted to inherit this blessing, he was rejected…though he sought the blessing with tears. 

Hebrews 12:17

Transcript

When Good Desires Become Idols

Chuck and Sharon Betters

Today’s Treasure

When he (Esau) wanted to inherit this blessing, he was rejected…though he sought the blessing with tears. 

Hebrews 12:17

It’s difficult to understand how Isaac, a man who clearly tried to circumvent God’s plans, is included in the Hall of Faith. Let’s see if we can unravel the story a little bit more to discover why Isaac is called a man of faith.

Jacob, now the recipient of this material blessing, quickly left his father’s tent before his deception was discovered. Esau then entered, bringing with him the tasty meal he had prepared for his father. Isaac, realizing with shock what Jacob had done, “trembled violently” (v. 33), but nevertheless affirmed that the blessing he had given to Jacob must stand. Isaac would later extend the critical final part of the patriarchal blessing to Jacob as well.

When Esau realized that Isaac would not rescind the blessing and that Jacob was destined, according to the terms of the blessing, to rule over him after his father’s death, he burst out with a loud and bitter cry: “Bless me—me too, my father!” (v. 34).

Esau was seeking money and power, not spiritual leadership. Hebrews 12:17 describes God’s reaction to his tears: “When he wanted to inherit this blessing, he was rejected… though he sought the blessing with tears.” These were not tears of repentance for offending God and for despising the birthright; these were tears of sorrow and regret over an enormous loss of wealth and prestige. Isaac responded to Esau’s painful outburst by giving him a “blessing” that sounds more like a curse: Esau would not know the economic prosperity of his brother; he and his children would live as scavengers; and he and his descendants were destined to serve Jacob and his descendants. Isaac, by faith, also sees into the future and prophesies that Esau’s descendants will eventually throw off the rule of Jacob’s descendants (Genesis 27:39-40).

And here is the reason Isaac is in the Hall of Faith. It is for the giving of both of these blessings, the one to Esau but especially the one to Jacob, that Isaac is honored in Hebrews 11:20: “By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau in regard to their future.”

What had transpired in those few moments to mark Isaac as a man of faith? The phrase, “in regard to their future,” is best translated: concerning the events that were inevitable or predestined. Isaac’s partiality to Esau was at cross purposes with his responsibility to obey God. Perhaps he trembled because he suddenly understood that he had pitted his desires against God’s will. All at once, Isaac remembered that this was not about meeting Esau’s needs or his own desires. This blessing was about God’s plan to redeem His children. Isaac surrendered to God’s purposes with an amazing, affecting combination of both awe at God’s sovereign ways and sadness for himself and his tragic, favored, but now lost son. Isaac did not understand—indeed, could not have fully understood—what God intended for the distant future, but at that moment, Isaac reflected a deep and profound faith in God’s plan of redemption, despite his own tragic personal circumstances.

Esau, in contrast, did not acknowledge God’s hand in this situation. He blamed Jacob and plotted to kill his brother (Genesis 27:41), thereby showing his utter disdain for his father and the words of his father’s blessing (that he would one day serve Jacob) and, ultimately, his contempt for the will of God. There is no evidence of surrender in Esau’s life—none whatsoever. Rebekah, upon learning of Esau’s nefarious plan, instructed Jacob to visit her brother Laban for a while until Esau had calmed down. Then she lied to Isaac, telling him that she had sent Jacob away because she was afraid he would marry a Hittite woman, as Esau had done. Isaac then gave Jacob the final and most important part of the covenant blessing (Genesis 28:1–4) and sent him away to find a wife.

Each player in this story attempted to “control” God’s plan, coercing events and circumstances to achieve his or her own shortsighted ends. Isaac and Rebekah had begun their marriage with an understanding of their part in God’s plan of redemption, and they had both certainly loved each other and trusted God. So what happened?

Isaac and Rebekah lost sight of the fact that privilege comes with responsibility—and such responsibility can be costly. Instead of training their sons to revere God and preparing them for the roles God had ordained, the parents each chose to focus attention on their own favorite child. Isaac attempted to compromise God’s instructions. He plotted ways to satisfy himself in Esau and convinced himself that he was still submitting to God’s plans. Rebekah, for her part, had slowly grown accustomed to deceit. Years earlier, Isaac had followed his own father’s bad example; he had risked Rebekah’s life in order to protect his own, by using precisely the same lie Abraham had used—claiming Rebekah was “his sister” (Genesis 26:7-11)—and to the very same man, no less (Abimelech, king of Gerar). Perhaps Rebekah concluded from this episode that it was acceptable to deceive and manipulate her husband, provided it was all done for a “good cause”: to secure the full patriarchal blessing for her beloved Jacob. In turn, Jacob, the chosen one, repeatedly lied to his father, and he failed to trust God to give him what was promised. Esau, the pleasure seeker, dishonored God in his life, married whom he willed, scorned his birthright, and then had the temerity to cry “foul”—and almost immediately started plotting the cold-blooded murder of his own brother.

LIFE-GIVING ENCOURAGEMENT

Isaac’s family members suffered the consequences of their sin. Rebekah had told Jacob she would carry on her shoulders the curse for their deception, and carry it she did. She would never see her beloved son again. The favoritism of the parents would lead, eventually, to the formation of two warring nations, to incalculable hurt and suffering for generations to come. Esau left the family in anger, plotting murder, and thereby revealing, once again, his own godless heart. Finally, Isaac, for his part, would not see Jacob again until he was on his deathbed, some forty-three years later. Where is the hope in this story of sad endings? As we wrap up our time with Isaac tomorrow, we will see God’s gracious forgiveness and perfect love play out in His plans not only for Isaac but all of His children.

PRAYER

Father, no doubt there are consequences for those times we refuse to obey You. Please forgive us for placing idols ahead of You and protect others from suffering for our sinful behavior.

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Adapted from Treasures of Faith by Chuck and Sharon Betters with permission from P&R Publishing

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