RECOVERING YOUR BIRTHRIGHT

By

Hilary Johnson Chukwuma Chukwurah (Evangelist)

Be careful so that no one among you comes short of the grace of God … there should be no fornicator, or profane person like Esau who because of one plate of food sold his birthright. As you aware, when it was time for him to inherit his blessings, he was rejected. He found no place of repentance, even though he sought it passionately with tears   – Hebrews 12:15-17.

Are you living only for the here and the now? Are you living for the permanent or for the temporal? Is your life defined by momentary pleasures? Are you building your life on the firm foundations of value and eternity? Is your birthright still intact or have you sold it? 

Esau sold his birthright and received a bad bargain. When it was time for him to utilize it, he found to his greatest surprise that he could not. It never dawned on him that no one would eat his cake and still have it.   

The pain of losing something valuable is something all of us can personally identify with. It becomes more disheartening when we realize that we are instrumental to the loss we suffered.

Esau’s experience is mankind’s challenge. Esau sold his birthright because he was hungry. He considered the satisfaction of his appetite more valuable than his right of first born. He gave away his treasure of inestimable value for that which was inconsequential. He allowed that which was temporal to becloud him of that which was eternal. One word aptly describes his action: stupidity! 

We are all quick to blame Esau for being naïve, but we soon forget that many of us are re-enacting the experience of Esau. Daily, we are in various market places trading away our valuables, our Birthrights. We trade away our birthrights for pleasures and popularity; fame and fortune.

It took one careless moment for Esau to sell his birthright. One careless moment is all it takes for people to sell their birthrights. We sell our birthrights when we engage in activities that jeopardize our spiritualities and moralities as well as mortgage our eternal well-beings.

ESAU GENERATION

Modern Esaus despise their birthrights as they fervently strive for this world’s riches and pleasures without giving a hoot! Their lusts for gold far outweigh their ardour for God. Esau chose pottage over his birthright. All too often modern Esaus choose this world’s rewards over what God has promised (I Corinthians 2:9). In this Esau generation, people seek to belong. In their quests to belong, they are pressured to conform, through which they are often led astray. They plunge into certain activities without giving their decisions second thoughts. “Everyone is doing it” they say, “So, it’s no big deal.” Living by our impulses can have serious adverse effects in this life and in eternity. A life that is lived in carnal pleasure – in the “here” and in the “now” is dangerous.

Esau’s generation is the generation of those who want what they want “here” and “now.” In the end, such lifestyles hunt those who are involved in them leaving traces of shame, which is an evidence of spiritual death (Romans 6:21). This was Esau’s experience and a powerful warning to mankind. How would you label your outlook: temporary or permanent?

 WHAT IS YOUR PRICE?      

Ahab sold himself to the devil (I Kings 21:25) and Esau sold his birthright (Genesis 25:31-35). At what prices were these transactions concluded? For Ahab, it was just a piece of property and for Esau, it was just a plate of food. At what prices have you sold are you selling yours? By virtue of the way you live, you make yourself an article of merchandize with a price tag. This, perhaps was why H. Rider Haggard in his book, She-Who Must Be Obeyed wrote:

For man can be bought with woman’s beauty if it be but beautiful enough; and woman’s beauty can be bought with gold, if only there be gold enough. So was it in my day, and so it will be to the end of time. The world is a great mart… where all things are for sale to him who bids the highest in the currency of our desires.

So, what is your price?

1.     Is it materialism?

2.     Is it fornication or adultery?

3.     Is it fashion or conformation to the world?

4.     Is it money or position?

It is unfortunate that many are selling their spiritual inheritances for the price of peanuts. Consequent upon this, God is asking, “Why?” – “What shall it profit a man to gain the whole world and then lose his soul?” (Matthew 16:26). 

Our prices are those things which bring us on our knees and inflame our passions, making us loose every sense of worth and purpose; yearling for instant gratifications; actions whose consequences are far-reaching, to which we are presently blinded to.

“Oh had I known” will be the cry of anyone who engages in the sale of his/her spiritual birthright. You would need to be careful of your present transactions because they may be your undoing in eternity. 

SAY, “NO!” TO SATAN’S OVERTURES TO SELL YOUR BIRTHRIGHT

When approached with the juicy offer of heir apparency to the royal Egyptian throne, “Moses refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, and chose to suffer with the people of God than to ‘enjoy the passing pleasures of sin’” (Hebrews 11:24-27). Moses refused to sell his spiritual birthright because he knew that a few moments of joy could usher in an eternity of misery. 

Moses was not the only one to whom an offer to sell out was made. Jesus was. At Matthew 4, Satan made offers to Jesus to despise His spiritual heritage, but the Lord rebuffed him. You are responsible for the kind of response you give when an offer to exchange that which is eternal for that which is temporal is extended to you. 

     

THE PAINS OF LOSS

Esau’s loss was colossal. He gave away that which was valuable for that which was not valuable. Esau’s loss typifies the loss of one’s soul in eternity. How painful it is to carelessly lose one’s admission, a family member, job, business, et cetera. While these are important, think of how catastrophic it will be to lose one’s soul.

Some girls have lost their virginities when they gave away “that which is holy to dogs” (those who do not know the values of such, Matthew 7:6) for few minutes of peer applause only to live to perpetually regret their actions.     

After Esau had traded away his birthright, years later, he sought to utilize it, but found out he could not. God’s Word tells us that he “sought for it passionately with tears” (Hebrews 12:16-17). How tragic!

You may not know what you are doing to yourself until it becomes too late - when you reach a point of no return, when you will cry, “Oh, had I known!” be assured that what you despised in time will be regretted of in all of eternity. While Hell is too hot to trifle with, Heaven is too precious to miss. The painful cries that will emanate from Hell will be very deafening. We urge you to consider an eternity of agonizing life in Hell Fire!

  

RECOVERING YOUR BIRTHRIGHT: THE IMPERATIVES

One cheering and encouraging fact is that so long as the breath of life is still in you, there is great hope for you to recover what you have lost or traded away. Even though, you cannot reverse what was done, you can still regain your values and stem the tide of retrogression. Jesus’ story of the “Prodigal Son” found at Luke 15 illustrates the fact that God is infinitely interested in the return of every prodigal. Jesus tells us that even though this Prodigal Son had blown away his inheritance in loose and riotous lifestyles (which is what characterize our world), however, when he came back to “his senses,” he realized the futility of his thoughts and actions. This made him to take steps towards recovery and restoration. He said to himself, “I will go back to my father; I will say to Him, ‘I have sinned against Heaven and against you; take me as one of your hired servants because I am not worthy to be called your son’ ” (Luke 15:18).  He made a strong resolve, stood up from where he was and went back to his father. His father welcomed him, instructed that his filthy clothes be removed and that he be decked with royal robes. A feast was organized for the return of the prodigal. His father said, “Celebrate with me for my son who was lost has returned….” (Luke 15:22-24). He was restored to his father. 

Friend, today is the day of recovery and restoration. God has made ample provision for the recovery and restoration of your lost Birthright in Jesus Christ. II Corinthians 5:17 says, “If any man is in Christ, he is a new creation; all things have passed away, behold all things have become new.” In Jesus Christ, God recreates your past, renews your present and readies your future. 

For you to recover your lost birthright, you should accept the invitation for a NEW LIFE in Jesus Christ when you do the following:      

1.     Believe in Jesus Christ as the Only Begotten Son of God without whose Vicarious Sacrifice on Calvary’s Cross, there is no living and visible hope for eternal salvation of your soul (John 8:24). 

2.     Repent of your sins by being remorseful of your spiritual and moral prodigalities; make firm decisions to live henceforth for Him who died for you and resurrected for your own eternal justification (Luke 13:3-5; Acts 3:19-21; Acts 17:30-31). 

3.     Confess your faith in Jesus Christ as the Son of God by reposing faith in His Finished Work of salvation (Romans 10:8-10; Acts 8:37-38; Matthew 10:32-33). 

4.     Be Baptized for the forgiveness of your sins and inauguration of a New Life in Jesus Christ (Mark 16:15-16; Acts 2:37-39; I Peter 3:21). Note, however, that baptism is not an act of sprinkling or pouring of water upon an individual, rather, it is the act of immersion in the watery grave in semblance of Jesus’ death and resurrection. Baptism is burial in water (Romans 6:3-5; Colossians 2:12; Acts 8:38-39)!

5.     Be added to One Body of Jesus Christ (I Corinthians 12:13; Ephesians 4:3-5; Colossians 1:18; Romans 16:16).  

It is our pleasure to introduce you to a community of believers who have experienced recovery of their birthrights and restoration of their relationships with God through Jesus Christ. These people are willing to help you in your quest for salvation and spiritual growth. We invite you to worship with any Congregation of CHURCH OF CHRIST near you.

BIBLICAL DISPENSATIONS

God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the Fathers by the prophets hath in these last days spoken unto us by His Son, whom He hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also He made the worlds; Who being the brightness of His glory, and the express Image of His Person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high – Hebrews 1:1-3

In God’s economy, there are times and seasons. If you are ignorant of this, you are bound to make mistakes that will impact negatively on your eternal salvation. You would think that you are doing what is right not knowing that you are dead wrong (Romans 10:1-3). When you understand and operate within the bounds of God’s timing, you can be sure that you are on point with Him.

Hebrews 1:1-3 explains that over time  God has communicated to His people through the Fathers, Prophets and His Son. These periods are known as Ages or Dispensations. Theologians refer to these as Patriarchal, Mosaical and Christian Dispensations. How God communicated to His Will to the Fathers differ from the way He communicated those in the Mosaical and the way He communicated with those in Mosaical differ from the way He communicates with us in the Christian. When we understand these, it will help us to appreciate what God’s Word for us now, are.     

THE THREE DISPENSATIONS:

There are three dispensations, namely: Patriarchal, Mosaical and Christian. One was a local religion, the other a national religion while the third is universal religion.  Characteristics of these dispensations are:

I. Patriarchal Dispensation or Age (Family, local or tribal)  

People under this dispensation practiced local, family or tribal religion. Under itn, God spoke to heads of families who in turn communicated God’s Will to members of their families. For instance, what God said to Adam was different from what He said to Noah; what He said to Noah differed from what He said to Abraham. Each family was administered differently because God’s Will for them was not unified. God’s commands to one patriarch was not binding on the other. There was no written system of religion as God spoke orally. Patriarch means father. Under this system, the patriarch was prophet, priest and ruler. He directed the affairs of the family or tribe religiously and politically.

The title of Patriarch is applied to Abraham. Hebrews 7:4 says, “Now consider how great this man was, unto whom even the patriarch Abraham gave the tenth of the spoils.” Stephen spoke of this period in Acts 7:8 when he said, “…so Abraham begat Isaac, and circumcised him on the eighth day; and Isaac begat Jacob; and Jacob begat the twelve patriarchs.”

This system of religion lasted approximately for 2500 years from Adam to the giving of the Law of God to Moses (the Ten Commandments) at Mount Sinai. It seems, however, that it did not terminate then, but was afterwards applicable only to gentiles.

II. Mosaical (Jewish) Dispensation or Age (National)

Mosaic Dispensation or Age was designed only for the nation of Israel, not for any other people before it or after it. At Deuteronomy 5:1-3 we read:

“And Moses called all Israel, and said unto them, Hear, O Israel, the statutes and judgments which I speak in your ears this day, that ye may learn them, and keep, and do them. The LORD our God made a covenant with us in Horeb. The LORD made not this covenant with our fathers, but with us, even us, who are all of us here alive this day.”

This was further strengthened by the statement in Romans 9:4. Under this dispensation, group, national or organized religion was introduced. Under it, God communicated His Will to His people through the agency of prophets (Amos 3:7). There was a system of Law, priests and judges. There was also a rule book.    

a.     This system grew out of God’s promise of earthly and temporal blessings made to Abraham (Genesis 12:2).

b.     The Mosaical (Jewish Dispensation) was the first written system of religion moderated by Law (“Ten commandments,” Exodus 19 and 20). Since then man has had a “Book” religion. Thus, the family religion was enlarged and developed into a national system. They had one national altar and one national house of God. No division was to be (Joshua 22:9-34).

c.     One purpose of the Mosaic (Jewish) dispensation was to keep Abraham’s posterity a separate and distinct race until the promised “Seed” (Christ) should come (Galatians 3:16-19). 

i.       This characteristic exclusiveness of the Jewish system had been called, “The middle wall of partition,” because it separated Jews from other nations (Ephesians 2:14).

d.     The Law of the Jewish system was to be “A shadow of good things to come” (Hebrews 10:1).

e.     It was to serve as a school master to bring us to Christ (Galatians 3:24).

i.       The world then was not prepared to receive Christ and His Gospel. This school master was to educate men and to bring them to Christ. 

f.       God intended for the Mosaical (Jewish) dispensation to be temporal. It was to last only “Till the seed should come to whom the promise was made” (Galatians 3:19). That seed is Christ (Galatians 3:16).

THUS, THE LAW AND JEWISH RELIGION WERE TO END WITH CHRIST (Romans 10:4; Luke 16:16; Colossians 2:14; Galatians 3:23-25).

g.     The Mosaic dispensation lasted from the giving of the Law on Mount Sinai to the death of Jesus Christ on the Cross of Calvary – a period of about 1500 years.

III. Christian Dispensation or Age (Universal religion)

Christian Dispensation is designed for everyone on the face of the earth. At Matthew 28:18-19 we read:

And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit….”

Under Christian dispensation, God now relates with everyone. This dispensation started on the Day of Pentecost and will last till the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. Under this dispensation, God communicates His Will to everyone through His Son, Jesus Christ (Hebrews 1:1-2). He no longer speaks to His people through patriarchs and prophets. He now speaks to mankind exclusively through His Son Jesus Christ (Matthew 17:1-5).

Previously, while speaking through prophets, He hinted that He was going to raise a prophet whose words would be law and that anyone who would not listen to Him would be cut off from among His people (Deuteronomy 18:15-18). At Acts 3:22-26, we read that Jesus fulfills that prophecy.

This dispensation is moderated by Grace and Truth. While the Law came through Moses, Grace and Truth came through Jesus Christ (John 1:15-17). In God’s overall economy, Moses was a servant while Jesus is the Son (Hebrews 3:4-6). Therefore when a servant speaks and the Son speaks, whose words do we think would carry greater weight? 

In Christian Age, God has thrown the doors open for everyone to be part of His overall plans. Ephesians 2:11-15 says:

“Wherefore remember, that ye being in time past Gentiles in the flesh, who are called Uncircumcision by that which is called the Circumcision in the flesh made by hands; that at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world: But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ. For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us; Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace.”

Both Jews and Gentiles have now been reconciled to God under One Body (Ephesians 2:16) which is the church (Colossians 1:18). Therefore, under this dispensation, there is no Jew or Gentile, Slave or Free born (Galatians 3:28). We are now one because at the Foot of the Cross every ground is level.

Christianity is the universal religion. It is meant for everyone from the days of Acts chapter 2 onwards. Everyone today is under the Christian dispensation. Under this dispensation, there is a system of Law known as the “Law of Christ.” There are no exclusive priests because everyone is a priest (I Peter 2:5).

This dispensation grew out of God’s spiritual promise made to Abraham (Genesis 12:3; 22:18). All the families and all the nations of the earth were to be blessed by a descendant of Abraham. That person so foretold was Christ who died for all of us and became the mediator of a better covenant.

i.       This was the new covenant that Jeremiah prophesied (Jeremiah 31:31-33) which Paul spoke of as having come to fulfillment (Hebrews 8:6-13).

ii.    God has, therefore, given us a new covenant which we are living under today.

What this implies is that because we are under the Christian Dispensation (Laws of Christ), we are no longer subject to the Patriarchal or Mosaical legislations and expectations. Today, when we join the laws given under the Jewish system with those given under the Christian system, we commit spiritual adultery

(Romans 7:1-4).

CONCLUSION

Today, we are solely under the Christian dispensation and should take our orders from none, but Christ. Peter had earlier wanted to build three tabernacles each for Moses, Elijah and our Lord Jesus Christ. God told him point blank that He was pleased with no other than His Son Jesus Christ Whom we must listen to (Matthew 17:1-5). Jesus Christ is God’s final spokesman (Hebrews 1:1-2). Therefore, Christian dispensation is what obtains now!