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Reframe, Refrain
Andy Stanley of Northpoint Church was at First Baptist Atlanta yesterday. He spoke about a passage in Genesis that many of us who have attempted or have been attempting to read the entire Bible from cover to cover may have encountered, mostly because it is in this earlier part of this first book, where the story has been moving quickly from the point of Creation. I’ve always wondered about this story, and now I could not believe how huge of a lesson was staring me in the face all this time.
In Genesis 25:19 onwards, we are introduced to the twin sons of Isaac, who is Abraham’s son. Andy talked about how older brother Esau was a guy’s guy - a hunter, outdoorsy type man of the field while Jacob preferred to stay indoors, peaceful and into domestic matters like cooking. One day Jacob had cooked some stew. Esau came in from the field, famished. In a verse that very much reminds me of the dramatic overtures of many a tween and teenager nowadays, Esau asked his younger brother for some of the stew:
30 He said to Jacob, “Quick, let me have some of that red stew! I’m famished!”
Younger brother Jacob, sensing the rare occasion of power that is in his hands, grabs the opportunity and goes to the top of the list of what to ask his older brother (in today’s context: can I drive your car? can we switch rooms?). He asked for the most valuable commodity in exchange for a bowl of stew: Esau’s birthright. All this time, I thought that Jacob was pretty sneaky and devious to do this to Esau (he did deceive his almost-blind father later on in the story by putting on some goat skin to pass for his hairy brother to receive blessings… just look that one up in Genesis 27). Frankly, I didn’t even fully comprehend what this whole birthright thing was. But it wasn’t so much about Jacob as it was about what Esau did. Again, just like many teenagers, we get a good dose of dramatic exaggaration from Esau:
32 ”Look, I am about to die,” Esau said. “What good is the birthright to me?”
Nope, he wasn’t about to die. But I do empathize, as I sometimes feel the same way when I am faced with cupcakes. But Jacob was a smart younger brother and went for the kill.
33 But Jacob said, “Swear to me first.” So he swore an oath to him, selling his birthright to Jacob.
34 Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and some lentil stew. He ate and drank, and then got up and left.
So Esau despised his birthright.
And with a bowl of stew, they sealed the deal. So I always thought: end of a story of one-upmanship between big bro and little bro. No big deal. But it is a big deal, a huge deal. Andy went on to illustrate what Esau had traded for that bowl of stew in its entirety. He painted a picture of what could have been, had Esau held on this his birthright. That years down the road, his people the Israelites would find their way into Egypt where they would get stuck as slaves. And one man named Moses, a descendant of his, would come face to face with God in a burning bush. God would introduce himself in this fashion: “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Esau.” And thus would start a chain of events that progresses through the ages and culminates with the arrival of one Jesus Christ. Years later, when Matthew, a disciple of Christ writes down the greatest story ever told, he would start with the introduction of Jesus’ lineage, and he would identify the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, counting from Abraham, the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of Esau.
But no, that’s not what is written in the Bible is it? It is now forever recorded in history that the whole chain of events leading to the birth, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ coursed not through Esau, the original firstborn of Isaac, but through his little brother Jacob.
Andy’s point is this: Esau, in a moment of hunger, weakness and short-sightedness, gave up his place in history for something small, temporary and insignificant. What struck me about this is how I can relate to Esau’s poorly made decision, just because it seemed like a good idea at the time. Andy talked about 2 important points:
IMPACT BIAS - where is takes a simple appetite and MAGNIFIES it out of proportion; results from chemical and neurological processes in our brain; a.k.a. I must have it (insert: cupcake, bag, Ipad, car, etc.) or I will die!
FOCALISM - focuses our mind on one thing and blurs out everything else —> hyper-focused; a.k.a. Nothing in the world matters except this one thing that I MUST have.
A bowl of stew made the difference between:
I am the Lord the God of Abraham, Isaac and Esau
and
I am the Lord the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
Who knows, it might have led to Team Edward vs. Team Esau too, but I digress.
The issue is not the bowl of stew but what it was that Esau had traded it for. While Esau may not have had the privilege of insight about the future, we can learn from this costly trade-off. Andy challenges us to think:
In ten years from now, what do I want, wish, hope to have/be/achieve? —> this preferred future is our birthright, it is our most valuable commodity. It is what we have to trade off for something else in a moment of weakness.
Then, consider: What is my bowl of stew? What are you trading your birthright/preferred future for?
So Andy comes to these points: Reframe. Put into context what you have and what you are trading for. Consider the cost and determine if it is worth it. Refrain. When we realize that it is nowhere near worth losing that which is most precious to us, we need to step away from the bowl of stew. Another interesting point in this is that Esau’s trade off affected not only himself, but also his children, his grandchildren and the rest of his descendants. As we make choices in life, we are often mislead into thinking that it’s all about us and about the here and now. People like me without kids may not appreciate this as much as those who have children. But consider how our entire life’s trajectory can be altered by giving into something that is temporary, passing and ultimately insignificant in the scheme of things.
We do not have a crystal ball to see how every decision made today will impact the future. I’m not going to drive myself crazy over-thinking every single choice. But I will endeavor to learn from Esau’s mistake and steer my life, with God’s grace, towards the path that God would like me to lead. And with His goodness, I know that this path will lead to what is best for me.
