Background Jacob takes advantage of Esau's weakness and buys Esau's birthright for a bowl of stew. Esau chose to sell his birthright. A bad decision, but he had a choice and did not value his birthright more than his immediate situation. He sold his future for his present happiness.

Today we need to be careful. Satan will attack us when we are the weakest. We are most vulnerable when we walk through the valley. Spiritual growth is synonomous with difficult times. God rewards those who successfully walk through he valley hand-in-hand with Him. Do not let satan rob you of your reward! Stand firm, focus on God, walk with Him and He will reward you graciously.

Isaac has grown old and is blind. Death is near and he has yet to pass along the" blessing." What is so special about this blessing? It was the custom and tradition for the father to "bless" his firstborn who would succeed him as the patriarch of the family. Special because it was the fathers final approval for the passing of the patriarchal mantel. Different than the birthright! The birthright provided for material possessions to enable the son to support the extended family. This blessing was the fathers invoking of God's wisdom, judgement, vision, and spiritual insight to lead the family. The patriarch was not only the family provider but also the judge and priest. He was to resolve family disputes and to lead the family spiritually.

Isaac intended to bless Esau. In light of God's revelation to Rebekah that her second born twin, Jacob, would rule over her firtst born, Esau (Gen. 25:23), and he would lord over his brothers and his mother's sons would bow down to him (Gen. 27:29): Why would Isaac plan to bless Esau? Was he going against God's will or His plan? I do not believe so. God did not "foreordain" or "predestine" Jacob to become ruler over his brother. He simply stated a fact. God knew that Esau would sell his birthright and that Rebekah and Jacob would trick Isaac into blessing Jacob. He did not cause these things to happen but He would work His devine plan within the framework of mankind's choices. He continues to do so today.

Esau paid the consequence for his choice, the loss of the birthright, loss of a spiritual blessing, harbored bitterness and hatred for his father and brother. Jacob would pay a price for his choice also. He would be decieved by Laban and have to work twice as long for his beloved Rachel (Gen. 29:25). God would honor his promise to Abraham and Isaac by blessing Jacob.

Chapter 28 begins a new era in the journey of God's people. Come Sunday prepared to study how God begin to mold Jacob into the father of the nation of Israel.

Genesis 28 (overview)
1. An obedient son.... vs 1-5 Obedience always yields God's blessings

2. A spiteful son.... vs 6-9 Bitterness ....not the attribute God wants us to foster

3. A funny thing happened on the way to Haran.... vs 10-22 A defining moment that changed Jacob's life

Until next time.......

Danny

General Info

1. Class fellowship rescheduled... our next class fellowship has been rescheduled from March 22 to March 29. Please mark you calendars accordingly.
2. Poll result .... 13 votes cast
#1 - Secrete Destination ( 46% - 6 votes)
#2- Trip to a nice restaurant (38% - 5 votes)
#3 - Outdoor cookout adventure ( 7% - 1 vote)
#4 - Cookout at local camp house (7% - 1 vote)
3. Women of Faith... for those women interested in knowing more about the 2008 Women of Faith conferences I have added a link the their web site. Several of our members have attended this conference and have been blessed. Follow the link, learn more about the conference.

Until next time.....

Special Prayer Request

I have been reading the blog and comments. I am excited about this way to keep connected! I really also like the links. I would like to ask the class for a special prayer request. Please pray for Stella Griffin (aunt of Jackie Gillespie and Susan Drew) who has just been diagnosed with fast-growing cancer. She will be having more tests and then surgery or treatments will be scheduled. She and her husband have no children and her husband is in the nursing home with Alzheimers. She really needs prayer. She lives in Matthews N.C., near Charlotte. Thanks so much for being such a great class. Love, Susan

Pastor Jay

On behalf of the Hope Class, Jenny and I delivered a large pot of homemade chicken soup, a box of Ritz crakers and a homemade pound cake to the Moore family today. Hopefully it will hit the spot on this chilly, rainy day. Jay is doing well and preparing for rehab. He completed his rehab assessment today but I'm not sure when rehab begins. Lamara is recuperating from a bout with the "bug" but is feeling better. Things seem to be on the mend and the upswing. Let's keep praying.

Until next time........

Danny

General Info & Response to DT

General Info
Only four days left to vote on what type fellowship we should plan next. Look to the right and vote. It is easy ....... your input is important.

In Reach / Out Reach
This past Sunday we scheduled our next fellowship for Saturday, March 22. Susan Drew (our In-Reach Coordinator) checked the calendar and has aptly pointed out the next day (March,23) is Easter Sunday. Not a good week-end for a fellowship!!! We should reschedule and most likely it will be in April. Please check your calendars and come prepared to reschedule this Sunday.

Out Reach
David Taylor (our Out-Reach Coordianator) has requested an update on Pastor Jay. Will someone volunteer to talk to Pastor Jay and advise us via the blog. Lamara was out this past Sunday with blood pressure problems. Does anyone have suggestion as to what, when, and how our class can minister to them during this time of need.

Danny

Do You Help or Exploit? Genesis 25:1 thru 27:46

Overview

Our lesson this week springboards off the relationship of two brothers - Esau and Jacob. Abraham has died (175 years of age). Before he dies Abraham honors the wishes of his beloved Sarah and gives all he has to Isaac. He provides gifts to all his other sons (born to wives after Sarah's death) and sends them away leaving Isaac the sole heir of all his possessions and the family patriarch. Isaac is married to Rebekah but she is barren and Isaac has no children. Isaac prays to God and Rebekah conceives. It is a troubled pregnancy and Rebekah asks God "why?" God reveals to her "Two nations are in your womb, and two peoples, born of you, shall be divided; the one shall be stronger than the other, the elder shall serve the younger." (Gen. 25;23). Esau and Jacob, the twin sons of Isaac and Rebekah, are born. Isaac is sixty years old at their birth. Esau was robust, hairy, reddish in complexion, a skilled hunter and the favorite of his father. Jacob had a fair complexion, was a shepard and the favorite of his mother.


Genesis 25: 29-34...the loss of a birthright!! Esau returns from an unsuccessful hunt and is exhausted. Jacob is preparing a stew and the aroma is more than Esau can bear. We have no reason to conclude that Jacob premeditated this event. However it is clear he seized the opportunity to leverage Esau's weakness. Jacob has something Esau wants, the stew, and Esau has something Jacob wants, the birthright. A request is made.."let me eat some of that red stuff, because I am exhausted." A price is required..."First sell me your birthright." A rationalization is made..."I'm about to die, so what good is a birthright to me?' The deal is consumated..."Swear to me first." Esau enters into an agreement and sells his birthright.

Do you think Jacob acted properly? What was the birthright and why was it important? What lessons can we learn from this and how can we apply them to life today?

I look forward to the dialog. Until next time............

Danny

Getting Started......

We are a Sunday School Class committed to learning about our Father God and applying His Word in daily living. Our objective is to provide an interactive forum to encourage our members and guests to study God's Word. The posts will focus around our Bible Study lesson for the upcoming Sunday. Hopefully, many will come to the site daily to review lessons and respond to questions, polls, posts, etc. For now, please review the site and provide feedback as to improvements and enhancements by posting comments to the site. I ask that you do two things.

First - for our class members this site offers you the opportunity to provide instant feedback for our next class fellowship. For example, please respond to the poll on the right side of this page in regard to our next fellowship. You have a choice of four (4) events to choose from. The honor system is in effect - vote only once please. Return to the blog periodically to review the result as people vote.

Second - Post a comment to provide feedback. It is easy. Click on "comments" at the end of the post. A pop-up window will appear, type in your comment, complete the "Word Verification" this option prevents computer generated responses, choose an identity - I suggest you choose Name/URL box, in the "name" box type your name, select preview to review your comment and finally - select publish to post your comment to the site. Or..you can post annoymously. You must select "publish" or your comment will not be processed. You will be able to visit the site and review the various responses.

Finally, email your classmembers and friends about the site. Until next time.....