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Are some believers giving up their opportunity to inherit the kingdom of God for a particular sin, as Esau gave up his worldly birthright inheritance for a bowl of stew?
GENESIS 25:29-33 (NKJV):
Jacob cooked a stew; and Esau came in from the field, and he was weary. And Esau said to Jacob, “Please feed me with that same red stew, for I am weary.” Therefore his name was called Edom. But Jacob said, “Sell me your birthright as of this day.” And Esau said, “Look, I am about to die; so what is this birthright to me?” Then Jacob said, “Swear to me as of this day.” So he swore to him, and sold his birthright to Jacob. And Jacob gave Esau bread and stew of lentils; then he ate and drank, arose, and went his way. Thus Esau despised his birthright.
Is there a deeper meaning to the story of Jacob and Esau than Esau giving up his worldly birthright inheritance? Could this story be a metaphor, a reflection of how many persons will give up their inheritance to the kingdom of God for a bowl of stew (some particular sin)?
There are many who believe in God, yet deceive themselves, believing that they can still have their bowl of stew (particular sin) and will be able to inherit the kingdom of God. Scripture declares that this will not be the case…
MATTHEW 7:21 (NKJV):
“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.”
LUKE 13:24 (NKJV):
Yeshua (Jesus) said, “Strive to enter through the narrow gate, for many, I say to you, will seek to enter and will not be able.”
Why will many seek, but ‘not be able’ to enter the kingdom of heaven? It is because many people of this world cling to some sin, some particular ‘cup of stew,’ and in doing so forfeit their birthright to inherit the kingdom of heaven.
1 CORINTHIANS 6:9-10 (NKJV):
Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God (reign of Elohim)? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor covetous (greedy of gain), nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God (reign of Elohim).
GALATIANS 5:19-21 (NKJV):
Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, drug sorcery, hatred, quarrels, jealousies, fits of rage, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, 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 (reign of Elohim).
EPHESIANS 5:5 (NKJV):
For this you know, that no fornicator, unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, has any inheritance in the kingdom of Messiah (Christ) and God.
REVELATION 21:8 (NKJV):
But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.
1 Corinthians 6:9-10, Galatians 5:19-21, Ephesians 5:5, and Revelation 21:8 serve as checklists of the serious sins that can keep a person from inheriting the kingdom of God, if a person is actively practicing these sins or are unrepentant after having committed them.
Many believe that lesser laws in the Tanakh (Old Testament) are no longer sins, are permissible, or obsolete, and cannot keep a believer from inheriting the kingdom of God. Many delude themselves into believing that they can disregard the Sabbath, observe pagan-inspired holidays such as Christmas and Easter, smoke cigarettes, eat unclean creatures, and still be acceptable before God to enter the kingdom of heaven. After all, these sins are not listed as sins in 1 Corinthians 6:9-10, Galatians 5:19-21, Ephesians 5:5, and Revelation 21:8, which can keep a person out of the kingdom of heaven.
All sins are sins that cause us to fall short of the glory of God. Worship God through condemned pagan practices and you are guilty of idolatry; use narcotic drugs, smoke cigarettes, and eat forbidden unclean creatures and you are guilty of coveting something forbidden by God and murder, as you are defiling and slowly killing your own body. The first sin was, after all, disobedience to God by eating from the forbidden fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Genesis 3:6).
MATTHEW 5:17-19 (NKJV):
“Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled. Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, SHALL BE CALLED LEAST IN THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN; but whoever does and teaches them, he SHALL BE CALLED GREAT IN THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN.”
Yeshua (Jesus) did not come to destroy the law; He came to fulfil the prophets prophecies concerning the Messiah who came to die to atone for the sins of mankind and through His sacrifice offer salvation to the world. Sabbath breaking, celebrating Christianized pagan holidays, and eating unclean creatures may not cause ignorant believers to lose their inheritance to the kingdom of God, but they will need to receive correction upon entering. There will be some who break the lesser laws of God, and teach others to break them, who will be called ‘least’ in the kingdom of heaven, and there will be those who obey the lesser laws and teach others to obey them, who will be called ‘great’ in the kingdom of heaven.
2 CORINTHIANS 13:5 (NKJV):
Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves.
Instead of excusing sin, even little sins, Scripture instructs us to examine ourselves.
1 JOHN 2:6 (NKJV):
He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.
We test ourselves through Scripture, to align ourselves to live as Yeshua (Jesus) lived. This is what we are instructed to do.
Scripture records that God loved Jacob and hated Esau (Malachi 1:2-3; Romans 9:13). God loves those who live and walk in faith, seeking Him while valuing their blessings and their birthright inheritance.
We are all sinners, yet God will forgive and forget the sins of those who repent and obey Him in all matters. The faithful, obedient, penitent person will be seen as righteous by God with all of his or her sins covered by the blood of Yeshua (Jesus).
The lawless, or those who covet their stew (particular sin), will be hated by God and will lose their birthright claim to inherit the kingdom of God.
Most who do not inherit the kingdom of God will not be cast to hell, but it is preferable to be among the blessed first-fruits, rather than to be among the many who will not initially be able to initially enter the kingdom of heaven through inheritance. The blessed are the first-fruit raptured saints and the resurrection of the dead in Messiah (Christ). The rest (those of the second resurrection) are not blessed, as they will lose their birthright inheritance, the kingdom of God, but will have an opportunity to repent and enter the kingdom of heaven after the millennium reign of Messiah (Christ) (Jeremiah 16:19; Revelation 20:5-6).
Yeshua (Jesus) is going to say one of two things to us when we meet Him.
MATTHEW 25:21,23; LUKE 19:17 (NKJV):
“Well done good and faithful servant…”
– or –
MATTHEW 7:23 (NKJV):
“I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!”
Lastly, concerning Esau and his bowl of stew…
HEBREWS 12:14-17 (NKJV):
Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord: 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; lest there be any fornicator or profane person like Esau, who for one morsel of food sold his birthright. 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.
DON’T DESPISE YOUR BIRTHRIGHT: INHERIT THE KINGDOM OF GOD!
Through the blood of Yeshua (Jesus), believers have been offered the kingdom of God as a birthright inheritance. Yet, as Esau gave up his birthright for a bowl of stew, sadly many people will be giving up their opportunity to inherit the kingdom of God as a birthright inheritance for some morsel of sin, Many will continue sinning willfully or ignorantly, while insulting God’s grace (Hebrews 10:26-29). Free sinning, unrepentant sinners will miss out on their birthright: inheriting the kingdom of God (Matthew 7:13-14).
