Part 2 Repent for the Kingdom is at Hand

“There are those who in their very first seeking of it
are nearer the kingdom of Heaven
than many who have for years believed themselves to be of it.
In the former there is more of the mind of Jesus,
and when He calls them they recognize Him at once and go after Him;
while the others examine Him from head to foot and,
finding Him not sufficiently like the Jesus of their conception,
turn their backs and go to church or chapel or chamber
to kneel before a vague form mingled of tradition and fancy.” George MacDonald


Repent for the Kingdom is at Hand: Part 2

There are two accounts in the Word that shed a light on the subject of repentance; the life of Esau, and the life of David. At first glance you might contend that their lives were very different, and in some ways, in especially one way, they were. Yet their lives however shared a number of similarities as well.

Esau was an expert gamesman, but on the occasion of one of his unsuccessful hunts he came home with a ravenous appetite. His twin brother Jacob was “stirring the pot.” He had made a pot of stew, and the smell wafting through the air enticed Esau more than he could bear. He pleaded with his brother for a bowl of stew. Jacob, being the second born saw his chance; he agreed to give Esau the stew if he would give him his (Esau’s) birthright as the firstborn. It was customary for the firstborn to get the best part, and at least a double portion of what the other children could expect from the father’s inheritance.
Esau foolishly reasoned:
"Behold, I am about to die;
so of what use then is the birthright to me?"
So Jacob made him swear that he would exchange his birthright for a cup-of-soup and some bread.
And Jacob said, "First swear to me"; so he swore to him, and sold his birthright to Jacob. Then Jacob gave Esau bread and lentil stew; and he ate and drank, and rose and went on his way. Thus Esau despised his birthright.
Genesis 25:32-34 NASB

Note what the word says here: Esau despised his birthright!
There is more here than simply a bartering agreement – Esau in doing this was rejecting not only the benefits and privileges of being firstborn but also the responsibilities of the firstborn.
The birthright was traditionally given to the firstborn boy of a family. It carried with it significant rights and responsibilities, both in the culture and with the Lord.
"Sanctify to Me every firstborn, the first offspring
of every womb among the sons of Israel,
both of man and beast; it belongs to Me."
Genesis 13:2 NASB

Esau wanted the blessing of the firstborn, but he had rejected the relationship with God inherent in it, and responsibility of the position. He chose a life of iniquity and immorality in place of his rightful inheritance. The life that Esau had chosen was and abomination before God. His repentance was only for that which he had lost, not for the fact that he had sinned against the Lord!

Anyone who lives a life that rejects the counsel of God,

will experience the same kind of rejection for their worldly repentance.

See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God; that no root of bitterness springing up causes trouble, and by it many be defiled; that there be no immoral or godless person like Esau, who sold his own birthright for a single meal. For you know that even afterwards, when he desired to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no place for repentance, though he sought for it with tears.
Hebrews 12:15-17 NASB

When David saw Bathsheba from the rooftop, he knew the lust that confronted him was wrong. He had been trained in the ways of the Lord, he knew the faithfulness of God, and he knew the Law of God. So when he acted upon his own lust, he too was rejecting the commandments of God.
He entered into an adulterous relationship with Bathsheba while her husband Uriah was off at war. She became pregnant with David’s child, and David summoned Uriah home (so that he would sleep with his wife and David’s sin wouldn’t be exposed). But Uriah, the consummate soldier that he was wouldn’t sleep with his wife, while his men were still in the midst of the battle – this was the soldier’s code of ethics.
David then conceived the plot to have Uriah ordered into the fiercest part of the fighting, withholding support from him to assure his death. The plan worked and Uriah was killed and David took Bathsheba as his wife.
The Lord sent the prophet Nathan to confront David:

Why have you despised the word of the LORD by doing evil in His sight?
You have struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword, have taken his wife to be your wife, and have killed him with the sword of the sons of Ammon.
2 Samuel 12:9 NASB
Notice how David responded to Nathan:
Then David said to Nathan, "I have sinned against the LORD " And Nathan said to David, "The LORD also has taken away your sin; you shall not die.
2 Samuel 12:13 NASB

There are several similarities in the lives of David and Esau which, on the surface, seem to confuse us as to why Esau’s seemingly small infraction was met with rejection, while David’s blatant violation of God’s Law, ended in restoration.
Both men came from the line of descendents of Abraham. They both were men who were what we would call today out-doors-men; Esau the hunter and David the shepherd. Both of them faced a physical desire and chose wrongly, choosing the temporal over the spiritual. Each of them became despondent over their sin. They each had rejected (despised) the commandments of the Law. Both men would face consequences for their sin that had far ranging effects even to future generations.

Esau rejected his rightful inheritance and responsibility before God, and chose a life of iniquity and immorality. The life that Esau had chosen was a rejection of the ways of God. His repentance was only for that which he had lost, not for the fact that he had sinned against the Lord! His heart was filled with pride and he refused to walk in humility before God.

David on the other hand wept bitter tears of repentance before the Lord. His saw that his actions had caused a wall to form between the Lord and himself. This is the foundation of true repentance: "I have sinned against the LORD "
David had lived a life of intimate fellowship with God, through trials and in victory, he knew where his strength came from – God alone. When he committed both adultery and murder, he immediately recognized that his fellowship had been broken by his sin, and he grieved before the Lord in true repentance.
If you will permit me this paraphrase of the Scripture, ‘he grieved in Spirit and in truth.’

In these two lives, we see the clear contrast between holiness and men’s wicked ways.

End Part 2
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