Sunday, July 18th, 2021 • Mission Baptist Cincinnati
We began our Sunday Worship Service with congregational singing followed by our Adult Choir singing a hymn to Honor God. A special guest then sings and plays to conclude the music service. Afterwards, Associate Pastor Kurt Lemke brought a message from Genesis 25:21-34 entitled: "Jacob and Esau". Pastor reads the text verses and prays to thank God for all of His blessings on our church. He also prays that the Holy Spirit would work in hearts to learn from what the Bible teaches us in this passage from Genesis regarding a man who chose to reject the blessings from God for his own way.
• BLESSINGS To Be Thankful For
Issac and Rebekah were blessed by God by her pregnancy when she had previously been barren. However there was an issue with her pregnancy, she was carrying twins and they were "struggling" within her. She prayed and God explained to her the impact these two boys would have on humanity. Two boys who would lead two nations and the younger, weaker boy would be served by the elder son, against common standards. Esau would be born first covered in red hair who would become a great hunter, a man of the world. Jacob would come next, a plain man who stayed in the tents with his mother. Issac loved Esau because he brought home meat that Issac loved. Rebekah loved Jacob and wanted him to have the birthright blessings of the first born. Pastor reminds us to be thankful for all the BLESSINGS God has given us regardless of our other desires. Esau had other ideas...
• BAD Decision Making
It appears from other scriptures that Esau had issues with morality and allowed earthly desires to dominate his character. He went on a hunting expedition unprepared and came home with his catch but also starving. Jacob prepared Esau's favorite dish in the tent and tempted Esau with it leading Esau to beg for it. Jacob took advantage of the situation and proposed a deal...the birthright of Esau in exchange for fresh bread and a bowl of hot lentil soup. Esau had already despised his birthright and gave it up. A legal deal making Jacob the owner of the right. Esau was guilty of making some really BAD Decisions.
• BIRTHRIGHT You Can Have
Jacob joined Abraham and Issac as the human bloodline that would lead to the messiah, Jesus Christ. Exactly as God had told Rebekah. These two boys represented two nations...Israel and Edom (modern day arabic palestinian). One nation that God chose and the other the bitter enemy of God's people. Pastor now shifts our sight to where the church fits into this plan. We are offered a precious BIRTHRIGHT to become a child of God, distinct from Israel, yet allied with her and the bride of Christ. God has given us this choice via the work of Jesus on the cross! We all have a very, very important choice to make here. An eternity in Heaven with the saviour and all brothers and sisters in Christ and the original people of God or we can choose the world that is dying before our eyes and an eternity separated from Heaven for refusing God's gracious offer. What will YOU choose?