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Teaching Outline:
  1. Introduction
     
  2. Birthright definition #1
     
  3. Birthright definition #2
     
  4. Birthright definition #3
     
  5. Birthright definition #4
     
  6. What are our advantages?
     
  7. 13 Point Summary
     

INTRODUCTION



In order to understand our birth-rights in Christ, we must first understand the concept of birth-rights in the old testament, since Jesus Christ's birth-rights were based upon them.

Genesis 25
19 And these are the generations of Isaac, Abraham's son: Abraham begat Isaac:
20 And Isaac was forty years old when he took Rebekah to wife, the daughter of Bethuel the Syrian of Padanaram, the sister to Laban the Syrian.

21 And Isaac intreated the LORD for his wife, because she was barren: and the LORD was intreated of him, and Rebekah his wife conceived.
22 And the children struggled together within her; and she said, If it be so, why am I thus? And she went to enquire of the LORD.

23 And the LORD said unto her, Two nations are in thy womb, and two manner of people shall be separated from thy bowels; and the one people shall be stronger than the other people; and the elder shall serve the younger.

Strong's Concordance #4578
meeh: internal organs, inward parts, belly
Part of Speech: Noun Masculine
Phonetic Spelling: (may-aw')
Definition: internal organs, inward parts, belly

Brown-Driver-Briggs>>definition #3: womb

Genesis 25:23 [amplified bible]
The Lord said to her, “[The founders of] two nations are in your womb;
And the separation of two nations has begun in your body; The one people shall be stronger than the other; And the older shall serve the younger.”

24 And when her days to be delivered were fulfilled, behold, there were twins in her womb.

25 And the first came out red, all over like an hairy garment; and they called his name Esau.
26 And after that came his brother out, and his hand took hold on Esau's heel; and his name was called Jacob: and Isaac was threescore years old when she bare them.

According to the Exhaustive Dictionary of Bible Names, page 122, Jacob means: He will supplant; he that supplants; he that follows after; a heeler; one who trips up; takes hold by the hand; supplanter; a detainer;

27 And the boys grew: and Esau was a cunning hunter, a man of the field; and Jacob was a plain man, dwelling in tents.
28 And Isaac loved Esau, because he did eat of his venison: but Rebekah loved Jacob.

29 And Jacob sod [boiled] pottage [food boiled in a pot - in this case it was lentils]: and Esau came from the field, and he was faint:
30 And Esau said to Jacob, Feed me, I pray thee, with that same red pottage; for I am faint: therefore was his name called Edom.

Why was Esau so faint?

Genesis 26:1
And there was a famine in the land, beside the first famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went unto Abimelech king of the Philistines unto Gerar.

31 And Jacob said, Sell me this day thy birthright.
32 And Esau said, Behold, I am at the point to die: and what profit shall this birthright do to me?

33 And Jacob said, Swear to me this day; and he sware unto him: and he sold his birthright unto Jacob.
34 Then Jacob gave Esau bread and pottage of lentiles; and he did eat and drink, and rose up, and went his way: thus Esau despised his birthright.



Esau selling his birthright to Jacob


[Painting by Hendrick ter Brugghen, Esau Selling His Birthright, c. 1627]

Its significant that in verses 29 and 30, it says that Esau was faint because figuratively and spiritually, he had weak believing.

Galatians 6
8 For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.
9 And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.

Look at the enlightenment that Hebrews sheds on Esau's true heart:

Hebrews 12
15 Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled;
16 Lest there be any fornicator, or profane person, as Esau, who for one morsel of meat sold his birthright.
17 For ye know how that afterward, when he would have inherited the blessing, he was rejected: for he found no place of repentance, though he sought it carefully with tears.

In verse 16, here is the meaning of "profane":

Strong's Concordance #952
bebélos: permitted to be trodden, by impl. unhallowed
Part of Speech: Adjective
Phonetic Spelling: (beb'-ay-los)
Definition: permitted to be trodden, by implication unhallowed
Usage: permitted to be trodden, accessible.

HELPS Word-studies
952 bébēlos (an adjective, derived from bainō, "go" and bēlos, "a threshold to enter a building") – properly, improper, unauthorized entry – literally, "crossing a threshold" which profanes because of improper entrance.

952 /bébēlos ("profane because of improper entrance") refers to people unfit to access (know) God, because they approach Him apart from faith [believing]. See also 949 (bébaios).

Definition of "profane":
characterized by irreverence or contempt for God or sacred principles or things;

John 10
1 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.
2 But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.

8 All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them.
9 I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.
10 The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.

Rev. L Craig Martindale [who has 50+ years of biblical research, teaching and practical application experience] taught that Esau was born of the seed of the serpent, which means he was a spiritual son of the devil.

From what I've studied so far on Esau, I support that conclusion. All the various scriptures back that up. And this is why God told Jacob to ask Esau to sell his birthright, because if he didn't, then Esau would have been the high priest of the family!

Proverbs 6 [kjv]
12 A naughty person, a wicked man, walketh with a froward mouth.
13 He winketh with his eyes, he speaketh with his feet, he teacheth with his fingers;

14 Frowardness is in his heart, he deviseth mischief continually; he soweth discord.
15 Therefore shall his calamity come suddenly; suddenly shall he be broken without remedy.

16 These six things doth the Lord hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto him:
17 A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood,

18 An heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief,
19 A false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren.

Proverbs 6 [amplified bible]
12 A worthless person, a wicked man, Is one who walks with a perverse (corrupt, vulgar) mouth.
13 Who winks with his eyes [in mockery], who shuffles his feet [to signal], Who points with his fingers [to give subversive instruction];

14 Who perversely in his heart plots trouble and evil continually; Who spreads discord and strife.
15 Therefore [the crushing weight of] his disaster will come suddenly upon him; Instantly he will be broken, and there will be no healing or remedy [because he has no heart for God].

16 These six things the Lord hates; Indeed, seven are repulsive to Him:
17 A proud look [the attitude that makes one overestimate oneself and discount others], a lying tongue, And hands that shed innocent blood,

18 A heart that creates wicked plans, Feet that run swiftly to evil,
19 A false witness who breathes out lies [even half-truths], And one who spreads discord (rumors) among brothers.

Job 23:12
Neither have I gone back from the commandment of his lips; I have esteemed the words of his mouth more than my necessary food.

Matthew 4:4
But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.

The old testament is the new testament concealed.
The new testament is the old testament revealed.


Maslow's hierarchy of needs pyramid with biblical overlay


This was just one of Esau's many flaws: he valued his physical food more than his spiritual food, which was his birthright.

In times of stress, a person's true colors are revealed.


Birth right definition #1

Definition of birthright
-noun
any right or privilege to which a person is entitled by birth: Democracy maintains that freedom is a birthright.

Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary
Birthright definition
This word denotes the special privileges and advantages belonging to the first-born son among the Jews. He became the priest of the family. Thus Reuben was the first-born of the patriarchs, and so the priesthood of the tribes belonged to him. That honour was, however, transferred by God from Reuben to Levi.

Numbers 3
12 And I, behold, I have taken the Levites from among the children of Israel instead of all the firstborn that openeth the matrix [womb] among the children of Israel: therefore the Levites shall be mine;
13 Because all the firstborn are mine; for on the day that I smote all the firstborn in the land of Egypt I hallowed [sanctified = set apart] unto me all the firstborn in Israel, both man and beast: mine shall they be: I am the Lord.

Ok, we need to clarify a few things here. In verse 12, what is a matrix?

Definition of matrix
-noun
matrix in Medicine
matrix ma trix (ma'triks)
n. pl. ma trix es or ma tri ces (ma'tri-sez', mat'ri-)

1 A surrounding substance within which something else originates, develops, or is contained.
2 The womb.
3 The formative cells or tissue of a fingernail, toenail, or tooth.
4 [See ground substance].
5 A specially shaped instrument, plastic material, or metal strip for holding and shaping the material used in filling a tooth cavity.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.

In verse 13, there is a grievous error in our understanding here. Where it says "I smote all the firstborn in the land of Egypt", the "I" is referring to God, of course, but the main issue is him smiting all the firstborn in the land of Egypt. This is known as the figure of speech idiom of permission - God ALLOWED the people in Egypt to be smitten by the destroyer[Satan] because of freedom of will. God gave simple instructions on how to be protected by the passover.

The following verses verify & clarify the true nature of God and the devil.

Some characteristics of the devil

John 10:10
The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I [Jesus Christ] am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.

I Peter 1:8
Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:

Some characteristics of God

I John 1:5
This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.

I John 4
8 He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love.
16 And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.

Psalm 34:8
O taste and see that the Lord is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him.

Now back to our first definition of birthright.

Numbers 8:18
And I have taken the Levites for all the firstborn of the children of Israel.

Birth right definition #2

The first-born son had allotted to him also a double portion of the paternal inheritance.

Deuteronomy 21
15 If a man have two wives, one beloved, and another hated, and they have born him children, both the beloved and the hated; and if the firstborn son be hers that was hated:
16 Then it shall be, when he maketh his sons to inherit that which he hath, that he may not make the son of the beloved firstborn before the son of the hated, which is indeed the firstborn:
17 But he shall acknowledge the son of the hated for the firstborn, by giving him a double portion of all that he hath: for he is the beginning of his strength; the right of the firstborn is his.

Reuben was, because of his undutiful conduct, deprived of his birth-right
Genesis 49
3 Reuben, thou art my firstborn, my might, and the beginning of my strength, the excellency of dignity, and the excellency of power:
4 Unstable as water, thou shalt not excel; because thou wentest up to thy father's bed; then defiledst thou it: he went up to my couch.

I Chronicles 5
1 Now the sons of Reuben the firstborn of Israel, (for he was the firstborn; but forasmuch as he defiled his father's bed, his birthright was given unto the sons of Joseph the son of Israel: and the genealogy is not to be reckoned after the birthright.
2 For Judah prevailed above his brethren, and of him came the chief ruler; but the birthright was Joseph's:)

Esau transferred his birth-right to Jacob.
Genesis 25
33 And Jacob said, Swear to me this day; and he sware unto him: and he sold his birthright unto Jacob.
34 Then Jacob gave Esau bread and pottage of lentiles; and he did eat and drink, and rose up, and went his way: thus Esau despised his birthright.

Birth right definition #3

The first-born inherited the judicial authority of his father, whatever it might be.

II Chronicles 21
1 Now Jehoshaphat slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David. And Jehoram his son reigned in his stead.
2 And he had brethren the sons of Jehoshaphat, Azariah, and Jehiel, and Zechariah, and Azariah, and Michael, and Shephatiah: all these were the sons of Jehoshaphat king of Israel.
3 And their father gave them great gifts of silver, and of gold, and of precious things, with fenced cities in Judah: but the kingdom gave he to Jehoram; because he was the firstborn.

Kingdom = reign of the king.

By divine appointment, however, David excluded Adonijah in favour of Solomon.

Birth right definition #4

The Jews attached a sacred importance to the rank of "first-born" and "first-begotten" as applied to the Messiah.

Romans 8:29
For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.

Colossians 1:18
And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.

Hebrews 1
4 Being made so much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.
5 For unto which of the angels said he at any time, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee? And again, I will be to him a Father, and he shall be to me a Son?
6 And again, when he bringeth in the firstbegotten into the world, he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him.

As first-born he has an inheritance superior to his brethren, and he alone is the true priest. Now we must clarify what exactly is a priest?

Definition of priest
British Dictionary definitions for priest priest
[pri:st]
noun
1. (Christianity) a person ordained to act as a mediator between God and man in administering the sacraments, preaching, blessing, guiding, etc
2. (in episcopal Churches) a minister in the second grade of the hierarchy of holy orders, ranking below a bishop but above a deacon
3. a minister of any religion

Our advantages in Christ

We've laid the groundwork on the importance and characteristics of the first-born son in the ancient Hebrew culture. How does that relate to Jesus Christ and us?


Matthew 27:11
And Jesus stood before the governor: and the governor asked him, saying, Art thou the King of the Jews? And Jesus said unto him, Thou sayest.

Jesus could be, and was, the King of the Judeans because, as God's first-born son, he had all the judicial authority of God, his father.

Revelation 17:14
These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful.

For the same reason, Jesus Christ could be, and was, the king of kings and lord of lords.

Romans 8
16 The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God:
17 And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.

18 For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.
28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

29 For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.
30 Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified.

Definition of heir
Bible Dictionary
Heir definition - Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary (bottom of page)

Under the patriarchs the property of a father was divided among the sons of his legitimate wives (Gen. 21:10; 24:36; 25:5), the eldest son(first-born) getting a larger portion than the rest. The Mosaic law made specific regulations regarding the transmission of real property, which are given in detail in Deut. 21:17; Num. 27:8; 36:6; 27:9-11. Succession to property was a matter of right and not of favour. Christ is the "heir of all things" (Heb. 1:2; Col. 1:15).

Believers are heirs of the "promise," "of righteousness," "of the kingdom," "of the world," "of God," "joint heirs" with Christ (Gal 3:29; Heb. 6:17; 11:7; James 2:5; Rom. 4:13; 8:17).

According to Romans 8, because of Jesus Christs' standing of being God's first-born son, WE are God's first born sons also. Therefore, we get all the advantages & blessings that a first born son gets!


Colossians 1
26 Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints:
27 To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:

With Christ in us, then we have all the rights & privileges of Jesus Christ himself as God's first born son!


Ephesians 1:3
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:

There's a figure of speech in this verse where one root word is used in 3 different ways.
  1. Blessed be the God...Here, blessed is used as an adjective of God, our father
  2. Who hath blessed us...here, blessed us is used as a past-tense verb, referring to what God has already done for us through the works of Jesus Christ
  3. Spiritual blessings...here blessings is used as a present-tense noun.
How can God bless us so much? Because as God's first-born son, Jesus Christ inherits a double portion of God's blessings & we have Christ in us, so that means we get a double portion of God's blessings too!!


Philippians 2
8 And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
9 Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:
10 That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;

Verse 9 - "above" - definition>to extend benefit (help) that reaches beyond the present situation.

We can use the name of Jesus Christ to exert the power of God in any situation we are in as sons of God. Jesus Christ had a name above everybody else because he had rulership of the kingdom as God's first born son.

Hebrews 1:4
Being made so much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.

Ephesians 1
13 In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,
14 Which is the earnest(down payment) of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.

18 The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints,
21 Far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come:

22 And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church,
23 Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.

In verse 21, Jesus Christ is far above Satan's powers & all other names because God gave him a name above all other names in philippians & Hebrews. He inherited it directly from God himself because Jesus Christ was God's first-born [and only born, son].

He has authority over all devil spirits because as God's first born son, he has the judicial authority over the kingdom of the adversary. Since Christ is in us, we have that same authority too. Jesus Christ is the head of the body of Christ because of his authority as first born son.

There are no records in the old testament of anybody ever casting a devil spirit out of somebody because the name of Jesus Christ had not yet come, whose name was far superior to the names all the devil spirits.


In the old testament, if you were possessed with a devil spirit, you could only get it out by putting God's word on in your mind and obeying God's will, or by death. The concept of the birthrights of Jesus Christ explains why the gospels were the first books of the bible to ever record somebody casting devil spirits out of people, because Jesus Christ, the only person who ever had a name above all names, had to come first.

Hebrews 4
14 Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession.
15 For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.
16 Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.

As God's first born son, Jesus Christ is the high priest & we are the family of God. Therefore, we have direct access to God because Jesus Christ is the high priest, the one who acts as a mediator between God and man.


Ephesians 3:12
In whom we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of him.

I Timothy 2
4 Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.
5 For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;
6 Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.

SUMMARY

  1. Esau sold his birthright to Jacob because he was faint due to the famine, and fearing he might die, he sold it due to the negative circumstances out of expediency and not necessarily what was the right thing to do.

  2. The flaw of Esau was that he valued his physical food more than his spiritual food [birthright] which contradicts Job 23:12 because Esau had his priorities upside down and despised his birthright.

  3. Among the Jews, birthrights denoted the special privileges and advantages belonging to the first-born son, who became the priest of the family.

  4. The first-born son had allotted to him also a double portion of the paternal inheritance.

  5. The first-born inherited the judicial authority of his father, whatever it might be.

  6. The Jews attached a sacred importance to the rank of "first-born" and "first-begotten" as applied to the Messiah

  7. God is light, and in him is no darkness at all, but the thief only comes to steal, kill, and destroy

  8. There is a figure of speech known as the idiom of permission where God ALLOWED the people in Egypt to be smitten by the destroyer[Satan]. Because some people chose to disobey God's commandments by their freedom of will, some people in Egypt were killed by Satan

  9. As God's only-begotten, and therefore also, first-born son, Jesus Christ became the high priest of the family of God; he received a double-portion of God's blessings; he had all the judicial authority of his father God; he had a sacred importance as the messiah

  10. Therefore, as God's first-born son, Jesus Christ had a name that was above all names, not only in our world, but in the third earth, which is still future

  11. There are no records of anybody in the Old Testament having a devil spirit cast out of them because Jesus Christ had not come yet, who had the superior name and authority of God to cast the devil spirits out

  12. Because we have Christ in us when we get born again of God's spirit, we, by God's grace, are counted as God's first-born sons also, and therefore, have all the rights of being God's first-born son, such as double blessings [Ephesians 1:3] and the "riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints" [Ephesians 1:18]

  13. With God's direction, we can deliver people from evil by casting devil spirits out of people with the superior name of Jesus Christ