Do you ever drive distracted? Sometimes when we are driving a vehicle that is worth a few thousand dollars, we allow ourselves to be distracted by a $10 CD or a radio station or a $5 meal or a $2 cup of coffee or a cell phone call, and sometimes that distraction leads to ruining that machine worth thousands of dollars. Would you throw away $10,000 in order to pay attention to something only worth $10?

In ancient China, the people desired security from the barbaric, invading hordes to the north. To get this protection, they built the Great Wall of China. It's 30 feet high, 18 feet thick, and more than 1500 miles long! The Chinese goal was to build an absolutely inpenetrable defense - too high to climb over, too thick to break down, and too long to go around. But during the first hundred years of the wall's existence China was successfully invaded three times. It wasn't the wall's fault. During all three invasions, the barbaric hordes never climbed over the wall, broke it down, or went around it; they simply bribed a gatekeeper and then marched right in through an open door. (James Emery White, You Can Experience a Purpose-ful Life). For the guards, they traded the security of China for a few dollars. In modern times, at Enron, a few insiders thought stealing a few dollars was worth financially blowing up the company.

I. Vss. 19-21 – Isaac was the son of promise to Abraham, but what good would that be if Isaac did not also have a son to carry on the line of promise? The promise of God to Abraham had everything to do with Abraham's children, and their children, as the promises of God would be realized in a particular person in history. God promised Abraham that he would be the father of many nations, not just one or two sons. So Isaac prayed that his wife Rebekah would have a child. And God answered.

Typically the promise and the blessing (and the inheritance) would be passed through the oldest son. But God chose to continue the line of blessing and promise through the younger son. God was choosing the younger over the older, upsetting the natural order of things, so conflict was on the horizon.

**Even in an answer to prayer, there is going to be difficulty and conflict (as foreshadowed in the pregnancy). There are challenges along the road to the fulfillment of God's promises, even as God is working out his plan.

Esau displayed animal-like tendencies, but that seems to describe human nature apart from God. “He despised his birthright” - it didn't mean anything to him. Like him, we see, we want, we take, we consume, even when we are sacrificing something important for something relatively meaningless, or something lasting for something momentary.

If you are a child of God, don't throw away long-term blessings and joys for momentary gratification. Sometimes men trade their families for momentary gratification with another woman, or a woman trades her family for a romantic encounter with a man. People trade the money they could use for retirement for TVs and cars and meals. We trade our current and future health for the gratification of our gluttony and our unwillingness to exercise. We trade our character and integrity to get ahead in life, only to end up losing relationships and respect.

If you are holding on to something valuable, don't drop it to grab something worthless. Your marriage and family is valuable – don't trade it in for momentary pleasure. Your character and integrity are important, so don't trade them in to steal something from work or to manipulate a friend. Your retirement is important, so don't trade those dollars in for all the stuff you get that won't last long. Your health is important, so don't trade it in for so many unhealthy meals, a lack of exercise, or another cigarette.

It is worth it to be a follower of Jesus. Life with God, both now and in eternity is worth it, even if you have to sacrifice and suffer in having it. Why ignore it or trade that in for temporary gratification? Matthew 8:21-22 says, “Another disciple said to him, 'Lord, first let me go and bury my father.' 22 But Jesus told him, 'Follow me, and let the dead bury their own dead.'” Follow Jesus – there is nothing more important in life.

In Mark 8:34-36, it says “Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: 'If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it. What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul?'”

Esau traded something valuable for a meal. We need to trade what we consider to be valuable for what the Communion meal represents -forgiveness and salvation through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.