Genesis 25:19-26 NKJV This is the genealogy of Isaac, Abraham’s son. Abraham begot Isaac. (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 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.
This morning I want to launch a quick three part series that covers the birth of Jacob and Esau, the beginning of their struggle with one another… and this odd turn of events were Esau sells his birthright for a bowl of stew.
- This is a section of scripture I have been questioned on a few times, and it leads up to a section of scripture that I have gotten LOT’S of questions about, namely Genesis 27 were Isaac Blesses Jacob instead of Esau.
- So I am kind of excited to be preaching through all of this, to study it, to take our time, to learn from it all…
- So, today we launch our three part sermon series titled “Birthright – Prayer, Pain, Perspective”.
- You see as Christians we have a birthright… do you guys know what I mean by birthright?
- A birthright is kind of like an inheritance…
- You know, what we get from our parents or loved ones when we die.
- In America we have last will’s and testaments… we write out what of our things goes where…
- So and so get’s the house, so and so get’s the car…
- Or we divide up our estate equally, each kid get’s 25% of my estate…
- But in ancient biblical times there was this concept known as birthright…
- As the firstborn son you have the right to all that your father has, it is yours by birthright.
- It is very unusual for the inheritance to go to someone else other than the firstborn son.
- Other sons, as we saw in last reading, other sons might get gifts from their father, but the estate, all the father has… that belongs by right to the first-born son, it is his birthright.
- “Now if you are a Christian, then you are born again, amen‽
- And when you were born again you were born into a heavenly kingdom with a Heavenly Father, amen?
- And as you were born again you were born into a birthright.
- So as Christians we have our own birthright from God—an inheritance that our Father freely given to us. Our birthright includes quite a few things, here are just a few:
- We have inherited all these things and so much more! We, as Christians, have a birthright!
- But just because we have a birthright doesn’t mean everything will always be easy.
- Oh how I wish that from the moment we Got saved that life got easy. That there would be no more temptation, no more sin, no more trials, no more pain.
- I wish that from the moment we got saved the enemy would leave us alone, that pain and sickness and suffering would cease, that persecution would be none existent.
- But the truth of the mater is, and everyone who has been a Christian for some time knows it… the truth is we still have to deal with all of these problems. It rains on the just and the unjust alike, amen?
- But the difference is, we as Christians have a umbrella! His name is Jesus. And much of my job as a pastor is teaching you how to hide under the protection of that umbrella, and encouraging you to stop leaving Him at home.
- I don’t know if that analogy made sense.. but the point is… WE HAVE A BIRTHRIGHT… and as we see with Jacob and Esau’s birthright, life under a birthright can at sometimes come with pain, and confusion, and problems…
- Now what you are going to see as we read through the rest of Chapter 25 is you are going to see Rebekah and Isaac struggle to conceive a child, we are going to talk about that today.
- Then they are going to have twins that fight in the womb causing Rebekah considerable pain and turmoil… we will talk about that next week.
- Then the twins are born, Jacob and Esau, and there is some family drama, and by the end of the chapter we see Esau selling his birthright… we talk about that in a couple of weeks…
- But today… what do you do when you know you have a calling, you know you have a promise you know you have a BIRTHRIGHT… but things don’t seem to be lining up? That’s this mornings sermon:
- I want to focus this morning on just three verses, verses 19-21… we read more than that for context, but let’s just look at these three:
Genesis 25:19-21 NKJV This is the genealogy of Isaac, Abraham’s son. Abraham begot Isaac. (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.
- You see Isaac had a birthright, but he also had a problem…
- Things were not lining up according to his birthright.
- Isaacs birthright was the promised land, the land of Canaan that would one day become Israel.
- But it wasn’t just the promised land, it was that he would have many, many heirs… that a nation would be born from him, generations would come from him… a mighty and chosen people would come from him. Even Christ the Mesiah would could from his line.
- So what’s the problem? His wife isn’t pregnant and is struggling to get pregnant.
- Just like Christians today, Isaac has a birthright and he has a problem… how does he defeat that problem, he defeats it with prayer.
- So point one this morning, a simple fundamental point in Christianity, but one worth remembering… You need to pray!
Point One – You Need to Pray
Genesis 25:21 NKJV Now Isaac pleaded with the LORD for his wife, because she was barren; and the LORD granted his plea, and Rebekah his wife conceived.
- I don’t feel like I need to hyper spiritualize this…
- This is not some deep revelation.
- It is very simple. Isaac needed something… SO HE PRAYED ABOUT IT.
- Church when you need something… YOU NEED TO PRAY.
Philippians 4:6 NKJV Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;
- IN EVERYTHING LET YOUR REQUESTS BE MADE KNOWN TO GOD.
- EVERYTHING.
- Your job, your kids, your health, your faith.
- Your year, your month, your day, your hour.
- I am going to pray about my daily bread.
- I am going to pray against evil.
- I am going to pray for God’s will to be done and for His kingdom to come.
- I am going to ask for wisdom, and God is going to give it to me.
- I am go to ask for direction, and God’s Word will illuminate my feet.
- When I am filled with hope I will rejoice in prayer, when I am in the midst of persecution, I am going to pray for patience… No matter what is happening in my life, good or bad, I need to be constant in this: PRAYER.
Romans 12:12 ESV Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.
- I am willing to bet that most people in this room need this sermon, even though it is SO BASIC, we need the reminder. YOU NEED TO PRAY.
- I am willing to bet that most people in this room don’t pray enough, myself included…
- Because 1 Thessalonians 5:17 says “Pray without ceasing” yet sometimes I cease praying.
- And Colossians 4:2 says to be steadfast in prayer, but sometimes my prayer life waivers.
- Philippians 4:6 says to pray about everything… but I don’t pray about everything… sometimes I do things in my own strength…
- Ephesians 6:18 says pray at all times in the Spirit. Some days go by where I don’t pray at all in the Spirit.
- I NEEED TO PRAY AND YOU NEED TO PRAY. Take it as a reminder, take it as an encouragement, let it be a boost to your prayer life. YOU NEED OT PRAY.
- Well pastor what do you mean you don’t pray enough… YOU ARE A PASTOR…
- Yeah man, and the disciples walked and talked with Jesus and they couldn’t even pray for an hour…
Matthew 26:40-43 NKJV Then He came to the disciples and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, “What! Could you not watch with Me one hour? (41) Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” (42) Again, a second time, He went away and prayed, saying, “O My Father, if this cup cannot pass away from Me unless I drink it, Your will be done.” (43) And He came and found them asleep again, for their eyes were heavy.
- The Son of God was about to be crucified and the disciples couldn’t even pray for an hour!
- So give you pastor a break, everybody grows! And I think we all have room to grow in this…
- By the way I never understood that song sweet hour of prayer…
- Sweet hour of prayer! sweet hour of prayer!
- that calls me from a world of care,
- WHAT KIND OF INTRAVERT NONSENSE‽ Hour of prayer… Bro I got things to do…
- But you know what song REALLY convicts me? Yes pastors get convicted to… it’s that good ol’ hymn “What a friend we have in Jesus”.
- I think it is a terrible name for that song… the song should be called “YOU NEED TO PRAY” because like 90 percent of the lyrics are about praying…
- What a friend we have in Jesus,
- All our sins and griefs to bear!
- What a privilege to carry
- Everything to God in prayer!
- Oh, what peace we often forfeit,
- Oh, what needless pain we bear,
- All because we do not carry
- Everything to God in prayer!
- MAN THOSE LYRICS CONVICT ME.
- What have I missed out on, what pain have I endured, what hardship have I carried, what blessing have I missed because I was too busy, too distracted, too tired to PRAY.
- You see church, one of our birthrights, as born again believers in Christ… One of our birthrights is free access to the throne of God.
Hebrews 4:16 NKJV Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
- God is on the throne, doing His Kingly duties. Judging the nations, overseeing all of creation. But at anytime we can boldly approach God.
- At any time, for anything… we can approach our Father.
- Some people have absent fathers so they become Christians and expect an absent God so they never approach Him in prayer.
- Others had fathers too consumed for work to be bothered by their children, so they assume that God must be too busy for their prayers.
- Some had abusive fathers, so they avoid God fearing He might lash out on them.
- But let me tell you, YOU WERE BORN AGAIN, you have a new Father… He is not absent, He is very much present and active in our lives!
- He is not too busy for you, He is all powerful and all knowing, it is impossible for Him to be too busy.
- He is not an abusive Father but a Just, and Loving, Merciful, and GOOD Father.
- So why hesitate to bring ANYTHING to Him in prayer?
1 John 5:14-15 ESV And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. (15) And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him.
Mark 11:24 NKJV Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.
James 4:2b-3 NKJV …Yet you do not have because you do not ask. (3) You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures.
- You have not because you ASK NOT. And if you are asking, you are asking selfishly. Just look at ol’ Isaac… he did not have a kid, even though having kids was part of his birthright… so what did he do? He asked… and then what happened? HE HAD.
Genesis 25:21 NKJV Now Isaac pleaded with the LORD for his wife, because she was barren; and the LORD granted his plea, and Rebekah his wife conceived.
- Man this verse is a whole sermon and a half. Isaac did not have, so he prayed, now he has…
- He prayed according to his birthright, according to the will of God, and now he has!
- By the way… side sermon here… but did you notice WHO prayed in this situation?
- The wife was baren, but THE HUSBAND PRAYED.
- Men, take note, especially married men… YOU NEED TO BE PRAYING NOT JUST FOR YOURSELF BUT FOR YOUR FAMILY. For your wife and kids.
- If you are going to call yourself the spiritual authority of your house, ACT LIKE IT, You need to pray.
- Of course in other areas of scriptures we see baren women praying for themselves but I just love that ISAAC prayed for his wife… he took it upon himself.
- Now, as we move into the second part of this sermon… what happens when you are asking… when you are asking in faith, and you are believing in faith.
- You are praying according to the will of God, you are not asking selfishly… you have the right heart and the right Spirit… you boldly approach the throne of God and ask… and then nothing happens…
- Then what? Well some will tell you that you did not have enough faith…
- And maybe that is true, we know that we need to believe in faith.
- Some will say “There must be some secret sin keeping you from God”.
- Maybe… we know sin separates us from God.
- But what about those times when you don’t have secret sin, when you are praying in faith, when you are living righteously and crying out and still you don’t have what you are asking for.
- You have not… but you HAVE asked… what about then?
- Well that is point two of my sermon… There is power in persistence…
Point Two – There is Power in Persistence
Genesis 25:21 NKJV Now Isaac pleaded with the LORD for his wife, because she was barren; and the LORD granted his plea, and Rebekah his wife conceived.
- Now it is easy to read this verse and preach it like it is name it and claim it, blab it and grab it, confess it and possess…
- Look at ol’ Isaac, he needed something, he prayed about it, and BAM! He got it… and not just one son but TWINS! Ain’t that just the power of prayer‽
- But church you will miss it if you read it out of context… let me read two more verses and see how good you are at math… see if you catch this…
Genesis 25:20a NKJV Isaac was forty years old when he took Rebekah as wife…
Genesis 25:26b NKJV Isaac was sixty years old when she bore them.
- Isaac was forty years old when he married his wife and SIXTY years old when she had children…
- THAT’S *counts on fingers* TWENTY YEARS Y’ALL.
- You see in verse 21 it says that Isaac PLEADED with the Lord… that word PLEADED is important.
- In Hebrew, it is the same word used for burning incense continually before God.
- Just think of intercession like continually burning incense, then read how God commanded incense to be burned before Him.
Exodus 30:7-8 NKJV “Aaron shall burn on it sweet incense every morning; when he tends the lamps, he shall burn incense on it. (8) And when Aaron lights the lamps at twilight, he shall burn incense on it, a perpetual incense before the LORD throughout your generations.
- The way that Aaron is instructed to burn incense… continuously, perpetually… That describes how Isaac prayed before the Lord.
- Every morning, praying “God give my wife children”
- Every evening “God, please, GIVE MY WIFE CHILDREN”.
- For twenty years… GOD GIVE MY WIFE CHILDREN.
- I AM SPEAKING TO SOME HUSBANDS THIS MORNING!
- GOD GIVE MY WIFE CHILDREN.
- GOD HEAL MY MARRIAGE.
- GOD BRING MY PRODIGAL SON BACK.
- GOD SAVE MY FAMILY MEMBER.
- Of course not just husbands, all of us need to be praying, and when it’s not happening, press in all the more.
- GOD GIVE BRING ME MY SPOUSE.
- GOD GIVE ME DIRECTION FOR COLLEGE.
- GOD HELP ME FIND A BETTER JOB.
- GOD HEAL THIS DESIESE IN ME, OR IN MY WIFE, OR IN MY CHILDREN, OR IN MY FRIEND…
- Back when I was a new believer there was a movement going around PUSH… Pray until something happens.
- I am not going to stop praying until Jesus does it, Jesus comes back, or I die and go and be with Jesus.
- Listen, think about Jesus’ parables… there are about 28 or so full narrative parables… Stories Jesus tells to get across kingdom principles… they are literally Jesus giving sermon illustrations.
- Of those 28, there is no parable about fasting… even though we know it is important.
- There is no parable about studying scripture… though it is vital to our faith.
- There are no parables about church attendance or tithing… even though they are clearly commanded in scripture.
- YET… THERE ARE TWO PARABLES ABOUT BEING PERSISTANT IN PRAYER!
Luke 18:1-5 NKJV Then He spoke a parable to them, that men always ought to pray and not lose heart, (2) saying: “There was in a certain city a judge who did not fear God nor regard man. (3) Now there was a widow in that city; and she came to him, saying, ‘Get justice for me from my adversary.’ (4) And he would not for a while; but afterward he said within himself, ‘Though I do not fear God nor regard man, (5) yet because this widow troubles me I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.’ ”
- Jesus says pray like a woman seeking justice… she asked the judge day in and day out… every morning as the judge came to the court room… there was the woman “Give me justice”.
- But she wasn’t that important… the judge had far more important cases to try.
- Give me justice!
- She wasn’t wealthy, she is a nobody.
- Give me justice!
- She will eventually give up.
- Give me justice!
- Maybe if I just ignore her…
- Give me justice!
- Day after day, month after month, year after year…
- GIVE ME JUSTICE!
- FINE! The judge finally says… because you have troubled me for so long… I will hear your case!
- THAT IS HOW JESUS TELLS US TO PRAY.
- The other parable is the man asking for bread at midnight in Luke 11.
- Give me bread!
- No go away.
- GIVE ME BREAD PLEASE MY FRIEND.
- I AM IN BED.
- GIVE ME BREAD!
- MY KIDS ARE ASLEEP.
- GIVE ME BREAD!
- FINE… just stop banging on the door!
- This is how Jeus teaches us to pray.
Luke 11:5-9 NKJV And He said to them, “Which of you shall have a friend, and go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves; (6) for a friend of mine has come to me on his journey, and I have nothing to set before him’; (7) and he will answer from within and say, ‘Do not trouble me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give to you’? (8) I say to you, though he will not rise and give to him because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence he will rise and give him as many as he needs. (9) “So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.
- So let’s conclude this first sermon in our BIRTHRIGHT series.
Show Series Title Slide “Birthright Series Title Slide.jpg” in the title slide folder and keep up until I start preaching the Gospel.
Conclusion
- Isaac had a birthright… but he also had a problem… so for 20 years he pleaded with God…
- Powerful, persistent, pleading prayer.
- And after 20 years, God heard his pleas and gave Isaac and Rebekah twins.
- My friend James has been trying to have a baby since they have been married… she is now, by a miracle of God, pregnant.
- July 23rd is their 20th anniversary.
- The God of Jacob and Isaac is the God of today.
- You have a birthright that you can believe in.
- And when problems arise. Pray.
- When you need something. Pray.
- When all is well. Pray.
- Prayers of thanksgiving, prayers of petition, prayers of intercession.
- Pray, pray some more, pray for 20 years if you have to… but I am telling you, I have seen it be true in scripture and I have seen it be true in life… There is power in persistent pleading prayer…
- Pray until something happens, amen‽
Join us this Sunday at either 8:30AM or 10:30AM for worship followed by this message from the Word of God.
Christian Life Church of Cedar Rapids
2808 Schaeffer DR SW,
Cedar Rapids, IA 52404
www.CedarRapidsChurch.com
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