A Very Big, Very Bad Deal

Our POTUS (President of the United States) is well-known for the business deals he has made over his adult years.  Those deals have added to his inherited wealth, building for him an "empire".  All of this preceded his ascension to the US presidency.

Have you ever made a bad deal?  There's an expression that goes "made a deal with the Devil". Goodness gracious!  I hope none of you have made a deal like that!

We find deals struck in the Bible, some of them good ones, others not good.  One of them, in fact, the writer of Hebrews calls "unholy".  That deal was not only detrimental to the one who made it; it had long-lasting, far-reaching consequences.

15See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no “root of bitterness” springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled; 16that no one is sexually immoral or unholy like Esau, who sold his birthright for a single meal. 17For you know that afterward, when he desired to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no chance to repent, though he sought it with tears.  

Hebrews 12:15-17 NET

The story can be found in Genesis 25, and though the story won't be reproduced here, do go read it.   The gist of it was this:  Esau had been given by God the privilege of being firstborn of twins.  The Bible records Esau emerged from the womb first, but that his twin brother Jacob came out holding on to Esau's heel!  So, it was "Esau for the win, by a hair", so to speak.

Being the firstborn son was "a huge deal" (pun intended), in Old Testament times.  It carried with it many rights, privileges and wealth not accorded the younger children.  As a young man Esau lacked judgment and was full of pride.  When he made his very bad deal, he did not think it was such a BIG deal (sorry...my "punnishness" is punishing you, I know.)

24When the time came for Rebekah to give birth, there were twins in her womb. 25The first came out reddish all over, like a hairy garment, so they named him Esau. 26When his brother came out with his hand clutching Esau’s heel, they named him Jacob. Isaac was sixty years old when they were born.

27When the boys grew up, Esau became a skilled hunter, a man of the open fields, but Jacob was an even-tempered man, living in tents. 28Isaac loved Esau because he had a taste for fresh game, but Rebekah loved Jacob.

29Now Jacob cooked some stew, and when Esau came in from the open fields, he was famished. 30So Esau said to Jacob, “Feed me some of the red stuff – yes, this red stuff – because I’m starving!” (That is why he was also called Edom.)

31But Jacob replied, “First sell me your birthright.” 32“Look,” said Esau, “I’m about to die! What use is the birthright to me?” 33But Jacob said, “Swear an oath to me now.” So Esau swore an oath to him and sold his birthright to Jacob.

34Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and lentil stew; Esau ate and drank, then got up and went out. So Esau despised his birthright.

Genesis 25:24-34 NET

The Hebrew word "despised" in verse 34 is  way-yi-ḇez and is found in only one other place in the OT Bible (Esther 3:6), where it is applied to Haman.  It is variously translated in Genesis 25:34 as "showed contempt for" or "belittled".  Essentially, Esau believed that he did not need his God-given birthright - - - that he could do just fine without it.  Or, perhaps he believed that his bad bargain with his brother could be undone.  Regardless, all of his reasoning in this life-changing situation was faulty.  He made an unholy deal from an unholy heart, because he did not value the gift God had given him.  And, the course of human history was completely changed, as a result.

As we examine our lives today, Christians, what gift or gifts has God given you that perhaps you have allowed Satan to convince you are worthless?  Satan loves to do that, you know - - - to convince us that our gifts aren't worth spit.  He loves to deceive us into believing we don't matter, that God's calling on us is insignificant.  If he can keep us in that mindset, then we accomplish little for God's kingdom, which makes room for Satan to create more havoc among those in God's kingdom and beyond.  We can look at unholy Esau and "tsk tsk".  But, are we any different when we reject God's calling on our lives?  Not really.  The consequences may or may not be as earth-changing. Remember: Esau did not think selling his birthright was significant either.  After he ate and drank (vs. 34), he "got up and went out" - - - apparently thinking no more of it.

I heard Mark Zuckerberg, founder of Facebook, say last week that we need in this country a "guaranteed minimum salary", that is, a minimum salary that is paid to every citizen, regardless of whether they work or how much they work.  What an unbiblical idea!

We tend to think that, if something is not easy, it is then neither holy, nor valuable.  We view opposition, trials and roadblocks as God's "no".  What inaccurate, unholy thinking!  God ministers to us in difficult times.  He grows and matures us then, as long as we don't wiggle out from under his tutelage, choosing an easier path. Difficulty (extreme hunger) compelled Esau to make his very bad deal, after all.  God's grace was available to him in that situation; yet, he chose the easy way out.  

God does not always spare us the consequences of our unfortunate trades, our costly deals with the deceiver.  I am thankful that, on the contrary, sometimes He does.  But, do we really want to play such a game of "Russian Roulette"?

Sacrificing the long-lasting, even the eternal, on the altar of the immediate has ruined millions of precious souls!
A far better mindset and attitude is to keep our hearts as attuned to His as we possibly can, seeking Him in every decision.  How can we know which of our choices will forever change the world? There is one choice which, as long as each of us has breath, can be changed for the better.  If you, like Esau, have persisted in unbelief concerning Jesus Christ, you can, as long as you draw breath in this world, change that terrible decision for the better.

At the heart of Esau's mistake was his unbelief and his brother, Jacob's, belief.  Jacob believed God's promises and esteemed them; Esau did not.  According to the Bible, the grandaddy of bad deals is the "deal with the Devil", because that is a deal which leads to an eternity in Hell.

God's number one gift to you, His number one promise, is that if you call on the name of His Son, Jesus, as your Savior and accept Him as your Lord, you will make the best deal you can ever make. Now, THAT is the deal of a lifetime!

And, if you have already taken advantage of God's offer of salvation, if you have already surrendered to the lordship of Jesus Christ, search your heart today to find the additional gifts He has given you. Then, believe Him!  Don't despise your gifts!  Embrace them and work them, so that God through you can change the world!

Masquerading and Seducing

Last night in the college Bible study group, we were studying the attributes of God.  I was thinking about this as I read Romans 7 this morning.  One of the things we did last night was to make a list of our own attributes and then later to make a list of God's attributes and compare them.  A huge gulf there!

It is important for us to contemplate God's characteristics, as revealed to us in both God's written word and also in His Son, the living Word.  Why?  Because if we don't we are in danger of creating our own god, making the Almighty over into an image which is pleasing to us.  I want to blog in more depth about this topic at some point, but today is not that day.

In Romans 7, Paul pointed out that sin (Satan, the devil, the enemy of the believer) doesn't usually flaunt or prance before our eyes to seduce us.  Instead, Satan dresses sin up in goodness, so that we are fooled. A mouse gets caught in a mousetrap because all he sees is the cheese.  Focusing exclusively on the morsel of good, he ignores the danger surrounding it.  Reaching for the good and beautiful, he is trapped by the deadly.

Temptation is like that.  Sin hides under the cloak of virtue.  If sin were not appealing, we would not fall for it.

8-12 Don’t you remember how it was? I do, perfectly well. The law code started out as an excellent piece of work. What happened, though, was that sin found a way to pervert the command into a temptation, making a piece of “forbidden fruit” out of it. The law code, instead of being used to guide me, was used to seduce me. Without all the paraphernalia of the law code, sin looked pretty dull and lifeless, and I went along without paying much attention to it. But once sin got its hands on the law code and decked itself out in all that finery, I was fooled, and fell for it. The very command that was supposed to guide me into life was cleverly used to trip me up, throwing me headlong. So sin was plenty alive, and I was stone dead. But the law code itself is God’s good and common sense, each command sane and holy counsel.

13 I can already hear your next question: “Does that mean I can’t even trust what is good [that is, the law]? Is good just as dangerous as evil?” No again! Sin simply did what sin is so famous for doing: using the good as a cover to tempt me to do what would finally destroy me. By hiding within God’s good commandment, sin did far more mischief than it could ever have accomplished on its own.

Romans 7:8-13 (The Message)

Paul gives this teaching to explain the role of the Law of Moses to both Old Testament Jews and New Testament Christians.  The original purpose of the Law was to show mankind exactly how God defined sin.  Had the Law not been given, there would have been a question about whether something was/is sin, or not.  It is important that we are honest about what the Word of God says.  If the Bible calls something sin, so should we.

Last night, for example, the Bible study group was discussing the Ten Commandments.  How many of us would have listed "Thou shalt not make unto me any graven image" as one of the "Big 10"?  It was years before I ever understood that commandment.  If, in your human life, you've never worshipped a manufactured object, you are probably similarly mystified.  "What's the big deal?", you ask.  But, remember, when Moses tarried on the mountain with God, and Aaron and the Hebrew nation thought he was dead, what was the first thing they did?  They pooled all their gold so that it could be melted down into a likeness of a golden calf (Exodus 32).  In other words, they created an image that represented their own fake, made-up, substitute god.  The Great "I AM" knows the black hearts of man so well!

The Law puts all that to rest in that it defines sin, from God's perspective, which is the only one that matters.  (Remember the two lists?  We are not like God.)

The law code had a perfectly legitimate function. Without its clear guidelines for right and wrong, moral behavior would be mostly guesswork. Apart from the succinct, surgical command, “You shall not covet,” I could have dressed covetousness up to look like a virtue and ruined my life with it.

Romans 7:7 (The Message)

The other function of The Law was to show us, mankind, just how incapable we are of meeting God's standard for sinlessness. Paul goes on to give personal testimony of how he struggled in his flesh with sins that were his specific pitfalls.

Recently, I was talking with a friend about one of her relatives who has what is often referred to in the churchy lingo as his "besetting sin": that sin that so easily trips a person up.  (We all have at least one.  If you don't, let me help you out: your besetting sin is then "pride".  Get a clue!)  At any rate, this friend's relative does not define his sin as "sin".  The world does not define it as sin, and the young man has adopted the world's perspective on his behavior, instead of God's.  He has made a golden calf and is worshipping it.  He has made God over into his own image.

Honestly, when we sin knowingly and deliberately ... (Christian or non-Christian) when we let that besetting, masquerading, seducing sin get the best of us, we are doing the same thing.  That should cause us great angst and grief.  It did Paul.  He described himself, in his Christian walk as "wretched" (KJV).  Read Romans 7:17-24 (The Message).

17-20 But I need something more! For if I know the law but still can’t keep it, and if the power of sin within me keeps sabotaging my best intentions, I obviously need help! I realize that I don’t have what it takes. I can will it, but I can’t do it. I decide to do good, but I don’t really do it; I decide not to do bad, but then I do it anyway. My decisions, such as they are, don’t result in actions. Something has gone wrong deep within me and gets the better of me every time.

21-23 It happens so regularly that it’s predictable. The moment I decide to do good, sin is there to trip me up. I truly delight in God’s commands, but it’s pretty obvious that not all of me joins in that delight. Parts of me covertly rebel, and just when I least expect it, they take charge.

24 I’ve tried everything and nothing helps. I’m at the end of my rope. Is there no one who can do anything for me? Isn’t that the real question?

All of this can become quite overwhelming.  But, fear not!  Chapter 8 was written for just this moment, and we will resume there tomorrow.

Behind the Veil: the Beauty of the Unseen

***
Good morning,

Are you burdened for someone today who does not know Jesus?   Perhaps, like me, there are those acquaintances, co-workers, friends, loved ones whom you pray for every day.  How should we pray for them, though?  I was thinking about that this morning in reading over yesterday's passage.  Let's look more carefully at 2 Cor. 4:3-5 again.

3 But even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled only to those who are perishing, 4 among whom the god of this age has blinded the minds of those who do not believe so they would not see the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God. 5 For we do not proclaim ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your slaves for Jesus’ sake.

One way that the gospel is veiled by the evil one (Satan) is that people are deceived into believing that they can live "good enough" lives to be reconciled with God.  This prideful deception is at the root of legalistic religions.  Although there are legalists who claim the name of Christ, the root of Christianity is the concept of "grace" - - - that is, man is utterly sinful and completely incapable of by his own actions or will reconciling himself to God.  There was a powerful, little book written a few years ago entitled, How Good is Good Enough?  Answer: there is no one good enough (Rom. 3:23).
We need to pray that our loved ones see themselves as God sees them: lost sinners, in need of the Savior.

Another way that the gospel is hidden is Satan's deception that either
a) God does not exist.
or
b) There is no Heaven or Hell.
or
c) The Bible is just an ancient book.
This is what I call the "fairytale deception", and it is promulgated by academics in America today. The line goes like this:  "Only stupid people believe in Christianity.  You can't be intelligent and believe that." This is an extension of the philosophy of "rationalism".
I heard on the radio yesterday that Hillsdale College is offering to the public a free course on the life of C.S. Lewis, an English professor from Oxford University, England, who was moved to belief in Christ after doing an honest investigation.  No sane person would argue that this man was unintelligent.  99.9% of people who proclaim this lie from the devil have not done an honest investigation of the claims of Jesus Christ, as did Lewis, McDowell, Yuan, Butterfield, Strobel, and many, many others.  It is much more easy and convenient to flow along with certain segments of popular society, even the world of academia, and just .... flow along with the other lemmings.
Paul, himself, was extremely well-educated.
We need to pray that our prayer targets' eyes will be opened to this deception of false intellectualism.

A third way the gospel is hidden is that other people prevent sinners from coming to salvation in Jesus Christ.  Because those who claim the name of Christ (whether that is genuine or not) they are viewed as representatives of Christ.  Therefore, when one of them offends an unbeliever, those actions often "turn unbelievers off" to the message of the gospel.  Whether the offender is truly saved, a true, sincere follower of Jesus Christ, or not, is not the point.  Even true believers struggle with sin, although they don't practice it.  The point is that unbelievers let their impressions of and experiences with other people define (distort) their view of Jesus Christ.
We need to pray that God will open their eyes to the truth of Who Jesus is, and that past experiences don't hinder them to the fact that Jesus is all-sufficient.

These veils can be removed, through the power of the Holy Spirit.  Paul never says that those whose understandings are veiled can never come to a saving knowledge of the truth.  On the contrary, he states the opposite, later on in this chapter: (2 Cor. 3:16-17)

6 but when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed. 17 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is present, there is freedom. 

You shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free.

John 8:32

Here is another beautiful truth.  Let's apply this to believers for a moment, because it is not just for the lost.  There are few passages that exemplify the Christian walk more than 2 Cor. 4:7-18.  But, let's hone in on the last two verses before we move on into our day.

17 For our momentary, light suffering is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison 18 because we are not looking at what can be seen but at what cannot be seen. For what can be seen is temporary, but what cannot be seen is eternal.

Christ followers, Believers, see things differently.  The reason we do is because we are possessed by Christ and filled with the Holy Spirit.  Accordingly, the Holy Spirit continues to "unveil" to us the beauty and majesty of God.  More and more, we focus on the spiritual, the "unseen".  The reason we do this is because the things easiest to see are only temporary, while spiritual victories (and losses) are forever.  We define "success" in a radically different way from how unbelievers define it.  We collect different "trophies", for different reasons.  The world focuses on how much a person can accumulate, for his or her own glory.  These include: wealth, fame, prestige, pleasure.  The Christian focuses on how much more he or she can know and become like Jesus Christ.  Accordingly, any "trophies" accumulated are for His glory and His alone.  It's a radically different outlook, producing a radically different life.  While the world chases sand, we share the liberating message that frees and feeds the soul.  The late English evangelist, Charles H. Spurgeon, understood this.

Let me give you a parable. In the days of Nero there was great shortness of food in the city of Rome, although there was abundance of corn to be purchased at Alexandria. A certain man who owned a vessel went down to the sea coast, and there he noticed many hungry people straining their eyes toward the sea, watching for the vessels that were to come from Egypt with corn. When these vessels came to the shore, one by one, the poor people wrung their hands in bitter disappointment, for on board the galleys there was nothing but sand which the tyrant emperor had compelled them to bring for use in the arena. It was infamous cruelty, when men were dying of hunger to command trading vessels to go to and fro, and bring nothing else but sand for gladiatorial shows, when wheat was so greatly needed. Then the merchant whose vessel was moored by the quay said to his shipmaster, "Take thou good heed that thou bring nothing back with thee from Alexandria but corn; and whereas, aforetime thou hast brought in the vessel a measure or two of sand, bring thou not so much as would lie upon a penny this time. Bring thou nothing else, I say, but wheat: for these people are dying, and now we must keep our vessels for this one business of bringing food for them." Alas! I have seen certain mighty galleys of late loaded with nothing but mere sand of philosophy and speculation, and I have said within myself, "Nay, but I will bear nothing in my ship but the revealed truth of God, the bread of life so greatly needed by the people." God grant us this day that our ship may have nothing on board it that may merely gratify the curiosity, or please the taste; but that there may be necessary truths for the salvation of souls. I would have each one of you say: "Well, it was just the old, old story of Jesus and his love, and nothing else." I have no desire to be famous for anything but preaching of the gospel. There are plenty who can fiddle to you the new music; it is for me to have no music at any time but that which is heard in heaven, -- "Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, to him be glory for ever and ever!"
from A Sermon, (No.1910), Delivered on Lord's-day Morning, July 18th, 1886, by

C. H. SPURGEON, at the Metropolitan Tabernacle, Newington, England

Father, to You, the Godhead Three-in-One, be glory, forever and ever!  Open our eyes, whether we are Yours or yet-to-be Yours, so that we can know the Truth, and so that the Truth may set us free!  In Jesus' name, amen.

Sources:

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_2_23?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=how+good+is+good+enough+by+andy+stanley&sprefix=How+good+is+good+enough%2Caps%2C319

http://redeeminggod.com/gospel-is-veiled-2-corinthians_4_3-4/

http://biblehub.com/library/spurgeon/spurgeons_sermons_volume_32_1886/the_heart_of_the_gospel.htm