Let the Weak Speak
Part 4 – Esau – Messing with the Blessing (1)
If we are to become everything that God has planned for us to be, there must be some changes in our lives. There must be a Divine transaction – a Divine exchange. God wants our weakness so that his supernatural strength can be seen in us. And so, the purpose of this series is to release anyone who is bound and limited by weakness into the fullness of their potential so that they can fulfil their purpose in bringing glory to God!
God’s plan is for us to no longer chase after signs and wonders and the latest exciting thing that is going on. He wants us to be signs and wonders and to be the most exciting thing that is going on wherever we are! Jesus said that when the Holy Spirit came upon us we would be a continuation of his life and ministry! He said it was better for him to go so that the Holy Spirit could come upon all believers and so the church could not just be added to but multiplied. The power of God that Jesus was anointed with is no longer limited to one person or restricted to one geographical location!
Isaiah 8: 18
18 Here am I and the children whom the LORD has given me!
We are for signs and wonders in Israel
From the LORD of hosts,
Who dwells in Mount Zion.
Here is our foundation scripture for this new series – Let The Weak Speak!
Joel 3: 9 – 10
9 Proclaim this among the nations:
“Prepare for war!
Wake up the mighty men,
Let all the men of war draw near,
Let them come up.
10 Beat your plowshares into swords
And your pruning hooks into spears;
Let the weak say, ‘I am strong.’”
It is time to win the war of words and to enforce the victory that is already ours over a defeated enemy that is too proud to admit defeat!
IT IS TIME TO LET THE WEAK SPEAK! IT IS TIME FOR THE WEAK TO SAY, “I AM STRONG!”
God’s heart is to bless us! Jesus came so that we could have and enjoy life in all of it’s fullness!
We need God’s blessing first in our lives before anything else. We need to become totally dependent upon his blessing and the strength of his provision. We must seek the first the kingdom of God and his righteousness so that all the other things that we need are added to us in abundance and so that we fill up and overflow and become the blessing we are designed to be – to be a sign and a wonder and the most exciting thing that is going on!
God called Abraham out of Ur of the Chaldees in order to bless him and make him a blessing, and in the same way he has called us out the world system so that we can be blessed and become a blessing! The further out you come from the world system the more of a blessing you will become to the world around you!
As I said last time – while I was studying and meditating my way through the Hebrews 11 Hall of Faith which focuses upon what weak people achieved by faith I noticed a couple of guys whose names are recorded there who both had a serious weakness in their lives but failed to access God’s help. Even though their names are mentioned in Hebrews 11 they are not preceded by the all-important words “by faith”.
How does God’s help come? Though his word! When we believe his word we receive his strength to overcome our weakness!
And so – as stated last time – as well as making the cost of discipleship clear it is important that we also communicate to people the much higher cost of refusing the invitation to come and surrender to the Lordship of Jesus Christ.
Last time we looked at Cain and how he brought his strength to God instead of his weakness – how he sought to impress God rather than acknowledging his own weakness and complete dependence upon God’s strength. We saw how he was offended at the refusal of God to accept his sacrifice and how he continued to reject God’s loving correction and counsel and how, in so doing he opened the door to resentment that led him to murder his brother. Even though it was not his brother Abel’s fault that he had been accepted when he was rejected that was not how Cain saw it. Unrepentant sinners always look for someone else to blame. In their perverted thinking they even come to a place where they imagine that disposing of the perceived competition will somehow make them acceptable.
Listen to this!
1 John 3: 13 – 15
13 Do not marvel, my brethren, if the world hates you. 14 We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love his brother abides in death. 15 Whoever hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.
That is pretty wild – but it is also very clear and unambiguous!
We need to see how much the devil hates the relationship between brothers. He recognises that there is power when brothers are together in agreement and so he is continually working to bring division and separation.
Psalm 133
1 How good and pleasant it is
when brothers live together in unity!
2 It is like precious oil poured on the head,
running down on the beard,
running down on Aaron's beard,
down upon the collar of his robes.
3 It is as if the dew of Hermon
were falling on Mount Zion.
For there the LORD commands his blessing,
even life forevermore.
God commands blessing! It is the blessing that is important! The blessing is God’s strength manifesting in our lives to enable us to overcome our weakness. God’s blessing is never just enough – there is always an abundance, an overflow that can bless someone else! He doesn’t just want my salvation to affect me so that it is just me that is forgiven, made righteous, healed, delivered or prospered. He wants forgiveness, righteousness, healing, deliverance and prosperity to overflow my life and touch someone else!
Matthew 18: 19 – 22
19 “Again I say to you that if two of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be done for them by My Father in heaven. 20 For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them.”
21 Then Peter came to Him and said, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Up to seven times?”
22 Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.”
We are not supposed to let anything get between us as brothers and sisters that will hinder the blessing of God! What is the blessing of God? It is his power and his glory – his strength and ability!
Last time we looked at Cain. What is really interesting is that our next example again involves the relationship between two brothers.
The second person who is mentioned in the Hebrews 11 Hall of Faith who is not there by faith is Esau.
Hebrews 11: 20
20 By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau concerning things to come.
Although this verse refers to Isaac blessing Jacob and Esau by faith, the by faith prefix passes over into the next generation in Jacob and not Esau.
Genesis 25: 20 – 34
20 Isaac was forty years old when he took Rebekah as wife, the daughter of Bethuel the Syrian of Padan Aram, the sister of Laban the Syrian. 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 (the one with the blessing) 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.
Esau was Isaac’s firstborn and so the birthright belonged to him. Along with the birthright came the blessing. Take note – just as Adam didn’t physically die as soon as he ate the forbidden fruit the lack of the blessing wasn’t immediately apparent in Esau’s life!
What argument persuaded Esau that he could play around with his birthright and make it alright later? Remember how it turned out? There was no way back even though he sought one diligently with tears!
Esau sold his birthright! What did the birthright bring? The blessing! What did the blessing consist of? Words! What did the words contain? Power! The power to bless! Esau’s weakness manifested in his messing with the blessing!
Jacob was a dodgy guy with major character flaws but he had something in him that eventually enabled him to overcome his weakness – he had a high regard for the blessing! Only the blessing can make the weak strong! Jacob’s life was really changed and he became truly blessed when he cried out to God that he would not let him go until he blessed him! Prior to that his prayer had been that he was unworthy of the least of God’s mercies and he was right! But the weak must speak – the weak must lay hold of the blessing as their only hope of victory and their only opportunity to overcome!
IT IS TIME TO LET THE WEAK SPEAK! LET THE WEAK SAY, “I AM STRONG!”
Listen to the words that should have been Esau’s but became Jacob’s!
Genesis 27: 28 – 29
28 “Therefore may God give you of the dew of heaven,
Of the fatness of the earth, and plenty of grain and wine.
29 Let peoples serve you, and nations bow down to you.
Be master over your brethren, and let your mother’s sons bow down to you.
Cursed be everyone who curses you, and blessed be those who bless you!”
Esau had to make do with leftovers.
Genesis 27: 30 – 41
30 Now it happened, as soon as Isaac had finished blessing Jacob, and Jacob had scarcely gone out from the presence of Isaac his father, that Esau his brother came in from his hunting. 31 He also had made savory food, and brought it to his father, and said to his father, “Let my father arise and eat of his son’s game, that your soul may bless me.”
32 And his father Isaac said to him, “Who are you?” So he said, “I am your son, your firstborn, Esau.”
33 Then Isaac trembled exceedingly, and said, “Who? Where is the one who hunted game and brought it to me? I ate all of it before you came, and I have blessed him—and indeed he shall be blessed.”
34 When Esau heard the words of his father, he cried with an exceedingly great and bitter cry, and said to his father, “Bless me—me also, O my father!”
35 But he said, “Your brother came with deceit and has taken away your blessing.”
36 And Esau said, “Is he not rightly named Jacob? For he has supplanted me these two times. He took away my birthright, and now look, he has taken away my blessing!” And he said, “Have you not reserved a blessing for me?”
37 Then Isaac answered and said to Esau, “Indeed I have made him your master, and all his brethren I have given to him as servants; with grain and wine I have sustained him. What shall I do now for you, my son?”
38 And Esau said to his father, “Have you only one blessing, my father? Bless me—me also, O my father!” And Esau lifted up his voice and wept.
39 Then Isaac his father answered and said to him: “ Behold, your dwelling shall be of the fatness of the earth, and of the dew of heaven from above.
40 By your sword you shall live, and you shall serve your brother; and it shall come to pass, when you become restless, that you shall break his yoke from your neck.”
41 So Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing with which his father blessed him, and Esau said in his heart, “The days of mourning for my father are at hand; then I will kill my brother Jacob.”
Listen to these words that reveal to us how God viewed Esau’s attitude to his birthright and blessing!
Malachi 1: 2 – 3
2 “ I have loved you,” says the LORD.
“ Yet you say, ‘In what way have You loved us?’
Was not Esau Jacob’s brother?” says the LORD.
“ Yet Jacob I have loved;
3 But Esau I have hated, and laid waste his mountains and his heritage
for the jackals of the wilderness.”
Esau sold his birthright for a lentil stew – for an opportunity to indulge his flesh just one time! It seems almost unfair that he lost his birthright in this way – particularly to a lying schemer like Jacob! But God has an overview of everything and even knows the end from the beginning. The LORD had revealed to Rebekah that the elder would serve the younger even while they were still in her womb.
God hated Esau’s sloppy attitude towards the blessing. The church is full of that same sloppy attitude towards God’s blessing and God still hates it! Those of us who are parents know that you can love your child but still hate some of their bad attitudes.
Just like Esau, we also have a birthright.
John 1: 12 – 13
12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: 13 who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
Jesus said that whoever receives him is given the right to be called a child of God.
Who is Jesus? The Word! What does the Word contain? The power to bless!
When you receive the Word, faith is activated, and faith accesses the grace – the supernatural power and ability of the blessing of God’s provision – that we need to overcome our weakness and become a sign and a wonder.
IT IS TIME TO LET THE WEAK SPEAK! LET THE WEAK SAY, “I AM STRONG!”
Esau was hungry – his flesh was saying, “FEED ME!” But the price of the lentil stew should have been too high. His birthright and the blessing were far too important to be traded for a single act of self-indulgence! But Esau – just like many people today – had a sloppy, indifferent attitude to the blessing and so he obviously thought that he could indulge his flesh and then sort things out later.
2 Chronicles 16: 9
9 For the eyes of the LORD run back and forth throughout the whole earth, to show himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him.
God is looking for a people who are consecrated to him. His eyes run to and fro across the whole earth searching for those whose hearts are completely his so that his strength can manifest in their weakness. The church are the called out ones – called out of the world to shine forth as examples of what it means to be in covenant with Almighty God. Called out to be signs and wonders!
2 Corinthians 6: 16 – 18
16 And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? for all of you are the temple of the living God; as God has said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 17 Wherefore come out from among them, and be all of you separate, says the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you. 18 And will be a Father unto you, and all of you shall be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.
Sadly, there has been so much compromise in the church over many years that those who have been born again excited and ready to surrender everything to the Lordship of Jesus Christ and live full-on for him have come into the church and been told that the level of excitement and zeal that they have is not really necessary and that it is actually undignified. They have been told to sit down, shut up and learn to conform to the status quo.
Amos 2: 11 – 12
11 I raised up some of your sons as prophets, and some of your young men as Nazirites.
Is it not so, O you children of Israel?” says the LORD.
12 “But you gave the Nazirites wine to drink, and commanded the prophets saying, ‘ Do not prophesy!’
I believe that there is a new breed of disciples arising who will refuse to conform to a lower standard than that which the Spirit of the LORD raises up!
Nazirite – Hebrew nazir – consecrated one + ite – consecrated to the service of God, under vows to abstain from alcohol, let the hair grow, and avoid defilement by contact with corpses (Numbers 6)
I believe the New Covenant Nazirite will be identified by clean living, a total dependence upon God’s strength, and an aversion to anything that represents dead religion! Some of them will even have long hair!
Malachi 4: 5 – 6
5 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD: 6 And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the earth with a curse.
What’s the only antidote to the curse? The blessing! I believe that there is coming forth a John the Baptist – spirit of Elijah – generation preparing the way for the Lord’s return! They will be those who choose spirit over flesh – who refuse to sell out their birthright for an opportunity to indulge their flesh. They will be a people born of God – kingdom people – greater than John the Baptist because they have a greater anointing. They will have the spirit of John the Baptist but also the anointing of Jesus. They will be signs and wonders – the exciting thing that is going on that people will come out to see!
Matthew 11: 8 – 15
8 But what did you go out to see? A man clothed in soft raiment? behold, they that wear soft clothing are in kings' houses. 9 But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I say unto you, and more than a prophet. 10 For this is he, of whom it is written, Behold, I send my messenger before your face, which shall prepare your way before you. 11 Verily I say unto you, Among them that are born of women there has not risen a greater than John the Baptist: notwithstanding he that is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. 12 And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force. 13 For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John. 14 And if all of you will receive it, this is Elijah, which was in order to come. 15 He that has ears to hear, let him hear.
They will bring a strong message of repentance and their lives and the lives of those who receive their message will produce fruit worthy of repentance – the fruit of the Spirit! The fruit is the sign that indicates the nature of the tree – trees of righteousness produce the fruit of righteousness! Their character will speak even louder than their charisma!
There is coming a Nazirite generation who will be fully consecrated to the LORD!
We have been born again as a brand new order of creation to live for God. We have not just been restored to the status of the original design where Adam was created sinless – we have been made righteous. We have received the blessing of God – his Spirit dwelling within us – supernaturally enabling us to overcome every weakness of the flesh in his strength! But if we despise our birthright and the blessing that it brings we can become sloppy and listen to our flesh and the voice of the enemy who wants to feed on our flesh.
Hebrews 12: 12 – 17
12 Therefore strengthen the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees, 13 and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be dislocated, but rather be healed.
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.
Listen to this!
Psalm 24: 3 – 6
3 Who may ascend into the hill of the LORD?
Or who may stand in His holy place?
4 He who has clean hands and a pure heart,
Who has not lifted up his soul to an idol,
Nor sworn deceitfully.
5 He shall receive blessing from the LORD,
And righteousness from the God of his salvation.
6 This is Jacob, the generation of those who seek Him,
Who seek Your face.
God is raising up a final generation who will be the manifestation of the church that is sanctified and cleansed by the word and walking in the fullness of the blessing – the glorious church that has no spot or wrinkle and that is holy and without blemish!
Galatians 5: 1, 13 – 26
1 Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage…
13 For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. 14 For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” 15 But if you bite and devour one another, beware lest you be consumed by one another! 16 I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. 17 For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish. 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
19 Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, 20 idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, 21 envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. 24 And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. 26 Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.
We have been called to stand so that we can be enabled to walk and equipped to war! So that we can walk in the blessing and produce the fruit of the blessing and release the gifts of the blessing!
There will be always be opportunities to despise our birthright and indulge our flesh but we need to take warning from Esau’s life. Remember – the war we are engaged in is a war of words. Our flesh has a strong voice and our adversary is also an expert at bringing a subtle and deceptive argument in an attempt to manipulate us into indulging our flesh and allowing him an opportunity to separate us from the blessing!
We can win this war!
IT IS TIME TO LET THE WEAK SPEAK! LET THE WEAK SAY, “I AM STRONG!”
When we choose to acknowledge our weakness and access God’s strength we are supernaturally empowered for victory!
Psalm 24: 7 – 10
7 Lift up your heads, O you gates!
And be lifted up, you everlasting doors!
And the King of glory shall come in.
8 Who is this King of glory?
The LORD strong and mighty,
The LORD mighty in battle.
9 Lift up your heads, O you gates!
Lift up, you everlasting doors!
And the King of glory shall come in.
10 Who is this King of glory?
The LORD of hosts,
He is the King of glory.
We don’t have to be like Esau who despised his birthright, missed out on the blessing, and had to fight his own battles in his own strength. We have been redeemed by the blood of the Lamb and so we have a testimony that overcomes every weakness in the strength of the blessing!
IT IS TIME TO STOP MESSING WITH THE BLESSING!
IT IS TIME TO LET THE WEAK SPEAK! LET THE WEAK SAY, “I AM STRONG!”