Apostasy is a departure from believing Jesus Christ to the saving of your soul. It’s a preference to satisfying the flesh over continuing in the Spirit. It starts down a dark road of falling away and forsaking, or failing at, the grace of God. God’s grace is forever unfailing, but you and I can fail at it. It’s dangerous because it is possible that any of us could become an apostate. One can reach the degree that it is not possible to get it back.
So we have Jacob’s soup. It’s to trade the grace of God for sin, for things of this world. We have the best with Jesus. Don’t be conned by the Jacob-like devil who offers momentary fulfillment in exchange for what’s eternal.
Hebrews 12: 15Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled; 16Lest there be any fornicator, or profane person, as Esau, who for one morsel of meat sold his birthright. 17For ye know how that afterward, when he would have inherited the blessing, he was rejected: for he found no place of repentance, though he sought it carefully with tears.
“Oh, that’s Esau. That’s not me. I can get back anytime.” Is that what you’re saying? I can’t tell you that you can.
The story of Esau is in Genesis. He was the firstborn of twins. They struggled in the womb. Esau came out first covered in red hair. Jacob was smooth. Esau was a man of the field. He favored the outside. He liked to hunt. Jacob was a man of tents. He liked to cook. He was as good a cook as Esau was a hunter. Esau liked his soup. Believe you me. The devil can cook up your favorite soup. Whatever your fleshly desires are, he knows the weaknesses. He’s the master chef. He can fix up what you like and open the window for you to smell it. At your lowest times he’ll have the pot ready.
Esau came in from hunting so tired and hungry he said he was about to die. The soup was on. He was a man with an appetite. We have a spiritual appetite that we need to keep hungry and keep filled. There is a lot of cooking going on. It’s a spiritually dead world that’s against Christianity. These are trying times. There is still spiritual food. You don’t have to go to the world to be fed. If you do, you’ll soon be in trouble.
Esau had a birthright, an inheritance. At Isaac’s death, Jacob would receive a small portion and not a lineage. It would go to his twin. We have a possession of our Father’s that we received when we accepted Jesus as Savior. We have the blessings. If only we could physically see what a child of God has we’d never quit or give up. However, we walk by faith not sight. Temporary things are not worth the long-term ones by any means. God takes care of us. We can never accuse him of shortchanging us. We’re inheritors of a birthright far better than what we had with the devil or anything that he could ever offer us now. Esau was the possessor of an estate and the inheritor of a future. People who live for the Lord have just as important a birthright.
Esau was a different man after this. His brother’s price for the soup was high. The birthright was Esau’s to do with what he wanted. Jacob wanted it in exchange for the soup. It’s up to us what we do with ours. The world is there wanting you to trade the now for the long term. Before you call Esau foolish for doing it, think about how many times you have sold Jesus out for less than a bowl of soup. Have you done things that some sinners won’t even do? Do you have character traits that not even some criminals have? This story shows how quickly things happen and serious this is. Jacob wanted it. He knew Esau’s weakness was his belly. Our weakness is our fleshly appetite, and the pot is on the stove. It has either already been offered to you or the devil is getting ready to offer it. You may be partaking of it right now. Esau said he’d die if he didn’t eat, and the birthright wouldn’t benefit him anyway. Jacob said “give it to me, and you can have all the soup you want.” Don’t categorize sin so easily. I’m not talking about sexual sins or being drunk. What about those curse words or that gossip? What about those grudges you’re holding. The sins we accept are there. There are 100 different bowls of soup. The devil wants you at his table. The more you eat, the worse you become.
Esau gave away his inheritance to Jacob for simply a bowl of soup and bread. He lost the birthright and never got it back though he sought and begged for it. If you give away what the Lord has given you, you may not get it back. The Lord is under no obligation. Esau forfeited any rights he had. He turned out to be an enemy of the family. His descendants were the Edomites, long-time enemies of Israel.
He regretted it the rest of his life. He could not reverse it. Jacob received what was to have been Esau’s. The soup was eaten and gone. The devil’s dainties run out. You won’t have anything.
We all know there are those who tell you that you can be saved and you can do anything you want and still go to heaven. It’s not so. Being here today is evidence that the grace of God is still here for you. None of us can guarantee another opportunity.
Do you need to be saved? Do you need a clearer vision and insight at what you have in the Lord? When we see how much we truly have, the soup is not appealing.
Adwolfe Freewill Baptist Church 