Goat Hair & Grudges | Adam Weber

Seriously, you'll pretend to be someone's friend just to use them, just to climb the corporate ladder. You'll even pretend to like a girl just to sleep with her. You'll pretend to love that family member just to get their money. It's so crazy. Just like Jacob, as a grown man, as a grown woman, you'll cover yourself with goat hair just to get what you want. And so just to ask the question right now, where are you pretending to be something that you're not? Today, we are continuing on in our new series called Wrestling With God. And my hope is that somehow, someway, God would just come and speak to all of us in a way that we would know is coming from Him. And so it's called Wrestling With God, and we're looking at the story of a really messy person named Jacob found in a bar in New York City. And we're going to call it Wrestling With God, and we're looking at the story of a really messy person named Jacob found in Genesis chapters 25 through 35. And just to bring us up to speed, Jacob and his brother Esau are twin sons of Isaac and Rebekah. And from the very beginning, literally since the womb, these two brothers just have a very bitter, broken, jealous relationship. And just to highlight this, even Jacob's name, Jacob's name, it means grabs the heel or heel holder, but it can also mean someone or something that takes the place of another by force or by trickery. And unfortunately, this Jacob, he fully lives up to his name. Last week, we specifically walked through chapter 25, where Jacob manipulated Esau, convincing Esau to trade the family birthright, which rightfully belonged to Esau because he's the oldest son. Esau traded his birthright for a bowl of stew, and as a result, Esau despises Jacob. Friends, if you missed last week, more than most Sundays, I really want to encourage you to go back and listen to week one in this series. It really builds. The story builds on itself. And so do that today, though, to continue on. At this time, if you have a Bible, I want to encourage you to open it up to the book of Genesis chapter 27. Genesis chapter 27. We're going to start in verse one. If you got a copy of one of the copies of Genesis, you can open up to page 16. And just an FYI for all campuses, we ran out of these things almost instantly last week. And so if that was you, know that that's true at all campuses. If you want to grab my notes that go along with what you're reading, go to imembrace.com slash Genesis. You can get the notes there. Last week, we also shared about a simple reading plan that we have. My daughter was talking smack to me the other day because she was ahead of where I am in the reading plan. And I'm like, I think you're only supposed to read one a day. And so I tried to

try to one up my daughter. So do that anyways. So I just want to encourage you. I think it's super cool that we're reading through the Bible together. So I want to encourage you to do that. We have extra bookmarks at every campus out in the entryway. Again, though, starting in chapter 27, verse one, here is what we are told. When Isaac was old and his eyes were so weak that he could no longer see, he called for Esau, his older son, and said to him, my son, here I am, Esau answered. Isaac said, I am now an old man and don't know the day of my death. Now then, get your equipment, your quiver and bow, and go out in the open country to hunt some wild game for me. Prepare me the kind of tasty food I like and bring it to me to eat so I may give you my blessing before I die. Once again, Isaac is getting old. And so he tells his oldest son, his favorite son, Esau, to go get his English setter named Senator and to go out hunting for some South Dakota pheasants and to prepare a tasty meal for him. I don't know why. I love that the word tasty is in the Bible. I'm like, I don't know why. I just, I'm always surprised to see tasty in there. But again, Isaac, he tells Esau to do this so that before he dies, Isaac can give Esau his blessing. Now, just to note this, at this time, it's like, what is a Family blessing, is that just a prayer, like a simple prayer? A family blessing, it was a spoken blessing by a father as a declaration of God's favor and a declaration over the son's future. It was a prayer, a blessing of prosperity that God's divine hand would be on the son who receives this blessing from their father. And so Isaac tells Esau to go, but when he does, unfortunately, Isaac's wife, Rebecca, overhears them talking. And so she comes up with a plan. I'm paraphrasing this, by the way. And she tells her favorite son, Jacob, not to go out hunting, but instead to go to the grocery store and get a couple of goats.

And she tells Jacob, listen carefully, I'm gonna prepare an awesome meal, exactly how your dad likes it. And because your dad can't see very well, we're gonna trick him. We're gonna trick him into giving you the blessing instead of your brother. Continuing on in verse 11, we're told Jacob said to Rebecca, his mother, but my brother Esau is a hairy man. Why do they always have to jab the hairy guys, okay? Esau is a hairy man, while I have smooth skin. What if my father touches me? I would appear to be tricking him. No, side note, Jacob, you are tricking him, okay? I would appear to be tricking him and would bring down a curse on myself rather than a blessing. His mother said to him, my son, let the curse fall on me. Just do what I say, go and get them for me. So he went and got them and brought them to his mother and she prepared some tasty food, just the way his father liked it. Then Rebecca took the best clothes of Esau, her older son, which she had in the house, and put them on her younger son, Jacob. She also covered his hands and the smooth part of his neck with goat skin. Then she handed to her son, Jacob, the tasty food and the bread she had made.

Okay, so I'll acknowledge it for all of us. This is messed up, okay? Like this is really messed up. And also just to highlight this, at this point, Jacob isn't a little boy anymore. When I read it for years, I'm like, I picture a mom helping out a fourth grade son. No, no, he's not a little boy anymore. Esau is married and he's a hunter. And here's Jacob still living at home with his mom, probably still playing video games all day. And the only thing he's excited about is the next season of Fortnite, okay? Quick side note for men, and I'm actually not joking here. And I say this humbly and I say this with kindness. Men, if this is you, it's time to grow up. It's time to grow up. I know I love being a teenage boy. It's time to be a man though. And truly men, we have such a higher calling. We have such a higher purpose. Again though, Jacob, he's a grown man and his mom is covering him with goat hair to help him pretend to be something or someone that he's not. He's pretending to be his brother. Now, again, this is bizarre on every level. Yes, it is. And yet I would also argue that we, you and I, we do this ourselves.

You and I, we try and pretend to be someone or something that we're not as well. And it may not always be done with the same dark motive that Jacob has. And yet we definitely, we definitely pretend. Like you'll pretend to have the nice house and the nice car and all the nice new things. And yet the truth is you're swimming in credit card debt. And it's fake. And you'll pretend to have the perfect life and the perfect marriage and posting all the perfect pictures online. And yet you and your spouse are actually on the verge of a divorce. Even as Christians, you'll pretend to say and do all the right good Christian things publicly and online. But privately, your heart is far from God. And people would be shocked by what they see behind closed doors. For some of you, you'll pretend to be this kind, thoughtful person just to get a sale, just to impress a group of people. But it's all a show. You might even laugh and break about how you're able to slide things past people without them realizing it. Seriously, you'll pretend to be someone's friend just to use them,

just to climb the corporate ladder. You'll even pretend to like a girl just to sleep with her. You'll pretend to love that family member. or just to get their money. It's so crazy, just like Jacob, as a grown man, as a grown woman, you'll cover yourself with goat hair just to get what you want. And so just to ask the question right now, where are you pretending to be something that you're not? Where are you pretending to be something that you're not? Maybe in small ways, maybe in huge ways. Seriously, where do you need to stop pretending? Where do you need to stop pretending? Now, to be super clear, when we talk about stopping pretending, this isn't a license to do whatever we want. When we say stop pretending, this doesn't mean to finally do whatever we feel. Like it's not a free pass to bail on our commitments or to go live a life that isn't pleasing to God just because we feel a certain way. An example, maybe for years, you felt like you've just been pretending to love your wife or you've been pretending to love your husband, but you really don't love them anymore. And so you've decided that you're gonna stop pretending and so you're gonna end your marriage and you're gonna be your true authentic self. No, don't do that. Wrong answer.

The solution isn't to walk away from your marriage. Yes, get honest, brutally honest about how you're feeling, but then go fight for your marriage. Then get help for your marriage. Then invest in your marriage. Then go see a marriage counselor. Then ask God for his help. Then go to the marriage conference next month. Seriously. Truly, when we stop pretending, this isn't doing whatever we feel. It's about getting honest. And then faithfully following Jesus in this area. Okay, so again, Jacob approaches his dad, Isaac, with this meal that his mom has made for him and he's dressed as a goat, pretending to be his brother. And then continuing on in verse 18, we're told this. He went to his father and said, my father, yes, my son. He answered, who is it? Jacob said to his father, I am Esau, your firstborn. I have done as you told me. Please sit up and eat some of my game so that you may give me your blessing. Isaac asked his son, how did you find it so quickly, my son? The Lord, your God gave me success, Jacob replied. Just to pause here for a minute, even though Jacob, even though Isaac, even though Isaac is an old man and he's blind, he's shocked and he's confused. And he's like, Esau, how in the heck

did you go pheasant hunting and make a meal this quickly? Well, in response, Jacob has to take the lie even further, which by the way, is what always happens with a lie. Like 99 out of 99 times, you tell a lie in order to keep going with the lie, you have to keep on lying. And also, don't you just love, insert sarcasm, how Jacob brings God himself into the lie. Friends, I'm not sure that I need to highlight this, but just for that one person who might need to hear it or every single one of us who needs to be reminded of it, don't include the Lord in your lies. Again, for the person way in the back, don't include the Lord in your lies. And honestly, don't include the Lord as your scapegoat either. It's not like a true lie, it's kind of like, it sounds better, like loosely telling people, yeah, I'm quitting my job because of Jesus. I'm breaking up with them because of Jesus. No, just be honest. I'm quitting my job because I hate my job. I'm breaking up with you, not because of Jesus, it's because you cheer for the Kansas City Chiefs and I can't stand it any longer. And as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord and we will cheer for Joe Burrow. Okay. That's my prayer for our church, okay. Continuing on, verse 21.

Then Isaac said to Jacob, come near so I can touch you, my son, to know whether you are really my son Esau or not. Again, the old man, he's confused. He's like, what's going on? Come near me so I can touch you, my son, to know if you're not. Jacob went close to his father Isaac, who touched him, and said, the voice is the voice of Jacob. But the hands are the hands of Esau. He did not recognize them for his hands were very hairy, were hairy like those of his brother Esau. So he proceeded to bless him. Even when he's proceeding, he's still like, I don't understand. Are you really my son, Esau? He asked, I am, he replied. Then he said, my son, bring me some of your game to eat so that I may give you my blessing. Jacob brought it to him and he. ate and he brought some wine and he drank. Then his father Isaac said to him, come here my son and kiss me. So we went to him and kissed him. When Isaac caught the smell of Esau's clothes, he blessed Jacob. I just gotta say every single time that I read this part of the story, it makes me ill. It just makes me sick. Just thinking about Isaac, this old godly man

who can't see he's being taken advantage of by his own kid, what? And it's just like, man. And so I feel that, and then it also just makes me so angry if I'm honest. It's just like, why do bad people get blessings? Ever asked that before? Why do bad people get blessings? Like, why do good things happen to bad people? Like, why does this shady business person have success? And why does this person who doesn't even care for the kids they already have keep getting pregnant and I can't? And why did the guy, the fool, the dirtbag who was driving drunk, why is he still alive and my loved one's not here anymore? Ever wrestled with that? Friends, looking at the specific story with Jacob, here's the truth though in this story. Deceit might get you a blessing, but it'll also catch up with you. Let me say that again. Deceit, it might get you a blessing. You might get something, like through lies and deceit, you might appear to get a head in life, but friends, it always, always, always, always will catch up with you. I'm just saying that our God, he sees all things. And yes, our God is loving, he's also just. And he tells us that he will make all things right,

which should be incredibly comforting to us in the same breath. It should also cause a holy fear inside of our bones. One more time, deceit might get you a blessing, but it'll also catch up with you. Going back to the story in verse 30, we're told after Isaac finished blessing him and Jacob had scarcely left his father's presence, his brother Esau came in from hunting. He too prepared some tasty food. It always strikes me that Jacob needed his mom to know what his dad preferred, but Esau knew how to prepare it because he loved his father. He prepared some tasty food and brought it to his father. Then he said to him, my father, please sit up and eat some of my game so that you may give me your blessing. His father Isaac asked him, who are you? I am your son, he answered, your firstborn Esau. Isaac trembled violently. Who was it then that hunted game and brought it to me? I ate it just before you came and I blessed him and indeed he will be blessed. When Esau heard his father's words, he burst out with a loud and bitter cry and said to his father, bless me. Me too, my father, but he said, your brother came deceitfully and took your blessing. Esau said, isn't he rightfully named Jacob? Isn't that dirtbag rightfully a trickster, a deceiver,

trying to get what doesn't belong to him? Isn't he rightfully named Jacob? This is the second time that fool has taken advantage of me. He took my birthright and now he's taken my blessing. Jumping ahead to 41, Esau held a grudge against Jacob because of the blessing his father had given him. He said to himself, the days of mourning for my father, my dear father are near, then I will kill my brother Jacob. Just to read these two lines again, Esau held a grudge against Jacob. Then I will kill my brother Jacob. So friends, there's so much that we could pull from this, with this, here's the truth though. Grudges try to get even, but they always bring death. Grudges try to get even, but they always bring death. Grudges try to get even, death is what always happens in our story. I don't want to downplay this at all. Esau has been deeply wronged. He's been severely screwed over by his brother twice, and he has every reason to want and deserve justice for what's been done to him. But hear this. When we're deeply hurt or wrong, there's a healthy way to deal with it, a healthy way to seek justice. And there's also unhealthy way. And I say this not just for the sake of the person who's done the wrong. I actually selfishly say it even more so for the person who's been wronged, for the person who's been hurt.

You see, we might try to get even. We might try to get even with the person who's wronged us, and we literally might want to hurt them. But in holding a grudge every single time, the grudge, it ends up slowly killing us every single time. And it ends up slowly killing our soul, our joy, our purpose, the very life inside of us. It slowly dies. Also, as parents, if you're holding on the grudge towards another person in your life, just know that grudge is impacting your kids as well. Truly grudges. They always bring death. And so what do we do? Right? What do we do with our grudge? I'm just saying the longer I'm alive, the easier it is to start holding on the grudges. Why? Because sometimes people really suck. Okay. Sometimes they suck. Just a reminder, though, sometimes you suck. Sometimes I suck. Man, again this week in our country. It's so clear our entire nation has a bunch of grudges and bitterness and resentment. But what do you do with a grudge, though? Do you just forgive and forget and act like it didn't happen? Is that what Jesus wants us to do?

No, it's not. And so what do you do? Well, if someone has done something illegal towards you, you can and you should report it. First off, again, we have a just God. And second, it's good and healthy to acknowledge that you've been wronged, trying to brush it off because you're tough or because you're a Christian and it shouldn't bother you. If it does bother you, it's usually not a great approach at anything, just acting like it didn't happen. Even if it's just to yourself, it's healthy to acknowledge, man, I'm hurt and I'm sad that my friend did this to me, that my family member did this to me, that my neighbor did this to me, or I was wrong and I just feel embarrassed and shame because of what took place. I just feel stupid because I was screwed over and I was so naive to let that happen to me. Seriously, this can be a huge step in itself, acknowledging it. Maybe you need to add a boundary with a person. Maybe you need to talk with a pastor, a Christian therapist to process through it. But then as a fowler of Jesus, here's the part that you're not going to want to hear. I don't, at least. If you have a grudge towards someone, what should you do? Well, old Jesus, he has something to say. I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you. I don't want to hear that. You got a grudge towards someone? What should you do?

Start praying for them. God, I hate them. Pray for them. They hurt me. Pray for them. Pray that God would move inside of them. Pray for their sake that the truth would come to light. Maybe pray that they get audited by the IRS if you need to. Just drop that in there. Pray that God would change them. And just so you know, right now, more than honestly any other week in a long time, I'm preaching to myself right now. For all of us daily, pray for these people. And if for no other reason, I tell you to do this for the sake of your soul. I do this to encourage you to set yourself free by the grace and power of God from this grudge. I encourage you to do this to protect yourself from death, because once again, grudges, they try to get even, but every single time, they always bring death. So today, just to close things up, Jacob has deceived his brother twice now, and as a result, Esau is burning with anger. He has this huge grudge towards his brother, so much so that Jacob has to flee for his life. He literally leaves and moves away so he's not killed, and with these two brothers, their relationship is completely broken, and they're deeply divided. And today, I just wanna ask the simple question,

who is this for you? Who is this for you? Who is your Jacob? Like right now, who do you have a broken relationship, and maybe like these two brothers, it's deeply broken. It's deeply divided. Or maybe on the flip side, you can't even really pinpoint what's going on. It just feels off. Your friendship, your relationship with your brother, with your coworker, with a neighbor, it's just like I don't even know what's going on. Again, who is this for you? And today, before we pray, right now, in your own mind, in your own heart, don't say it audibly, specifically if it's the name of the person right next to you. Right now, I just wanna encourage you to internally say their name. Internally, right now, to say their name. I challenge you, don't even just say your brother, your whatever, like your one coworker. Actually say their name. Honestly, I have a couple right now. Okay, so one step further, and there's no pressure to do this, and this might seem, honestly, completely impossible for some of us, but for the next 20 seconds internally, I just wanna encourage you to pray for this person.

Just pray for them. If you're like, Adam, I don't know what I'd even pray, just to say, Lord, would you please move in so-and-so's life? At all campuses, let's pray. Again, I just wanna give you a moment to pray for this person. Lord, as we started out, we're so thankful that you're a God who's close to the heavy burdened. You're close to the broken. And yet also, as your followers, you've called us and you've commanded us to be different. And your ways are so different than the world's. They're so different than our natural reaction. Your ways are just so much different. Your ways are higher than our ways will ever be. And we're so thankful that you're a God who's so much different. Your ways are higher than our ways will ever be. And Lord, with this person that we've just spoken in our mind and in our heart, for some of us, it's truly impossible to do on our own. And so we ask for your strength, your grace. God, I pray that this week that you would use us to be agents of who you are, agents of your strength, agents of your truth, agents of your love, your grace, your mercy, Lord. Lord, help us to keep our eyes on you moment by moment. You are our Lord, you are our Savior,

you are our everything, and you are the only one who is worthy of our lives, of our worship, of our praise. And so Lord, we love you, we thank you. We pray all these things in the name of Jesus, amen. Hey everyone, it's Adam from Embrace. If you enjoyed today's message, make sure to subscribe to Embrace's YouTube channel to stay updated. You can also click here to check out other videos. Thanks for watching.