HH, Sir Godfrey Gregg D.Div

And when Esau heard the words of his father, he cried with a great and exceeding bitter cry, and said unto his father, Bless me, even me also, O my father. Genesis 27:34

On this incident, the writer to the Hebrews founds the impressive lesson, that the choices of the past may cast a bitter and irrevocable shadow on all our future. When he afterwards desired to inherit blessing he was rejected; for he found no place of repentance, though he sought it diligently with tears.

(Lest there be any fornicator, or profane person, as Esau, who for one morsel of meat sold his birthright. ¹⁷ For 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. Hebrews 12:16-17).

Beware of the cravings of appetite.  In an evil moment, Esau yielded to these, and sold his birthright to secure their gratification; he found afterwards that the choice made in that hour was irrevocable. How needful that we watch and pray, lest we fall into temptation!

When borne in mind, there are four facts that guard us against the sudden oversetting of passionate appetite.

1. We were once dead in sins.  Surely we do not want to go back again to the charnel-house with its corruption.
2. We died for sins in the person of Christ our Representative.  In Him, we have met the demands of God’s holy law, but surely that must be an awful thing which cost our Saviour so dearly.
3. We died to sin with the Lord Jesus.  We have passed with Him on to Resurrection ground; so that we belong to the new heavens and new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.
4. We are called on to reckon ourselves dead in sin.  The nearer we live to God, the more sensitive we shall be to the most distant suggestion of evil, closing doors and windows against its entrance, reckoning ourselves “not at home” to it, and yielding our members as instruments of righteousness unto God.

This is our opportunity to move forward to the place where we can cry to our Father and ask forgiveness for all our wrongs. It is my prayer that we come to the understanding before we are completely sold out to the enemy. Let us stop and think for a moment and ask forgiveness and pray that our Father hears us and grant our request.