LIVING WORD DEVOTIONAL
By Pastor Mensa Otabil
 
Thursday 11th June 2026

PRESERVE THE BIRTHRIGHT

Lest there be any fornicator or profane person like Esau, who for one morsel of food sold his birthright.  you know that afterward, when he wanted to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no place for repentance, though he sought it diligently with tears. Hebrews 12:16–17

Esau sold his birthright, because he did not value what that Lord had blessed him with. As the first born of Isaac, Esau was the one to carry on the line of the promised Messiah. He was the one that his father was to pass the blessing of Abraham to in his old age. However, Esau despised his spiritual heritage in exchange for his physical needs.
 
Many years after Esau had despised his spiritual blessing, he realized the damage he had done to himself. At the time, he recklessly threw away what God wanted to give him for food. He paid no attention to his action. On the day when his father, Isaac, bypassed him with the blessing, Esau became aware of what he had lost. He wept for the birthright to be restored to him, but there was nothing for him.
 
Our relationship with God and the several blessings that come with it is our birthright. Like Esau, if we trade Christ for the world, we may find out the consequences when it is too late. Nothing that the world promises us remotely matches what God has freely given us in Christ. The pleasures of the world are temporary. Acceptance by the world is fleeting when compared with eternity.
 
We must treasure our spiritual walk with God above all else. The greatest honour anyone can have in this life is to be called a child of God. Is there any relationship better than to be a son or daughter of God? We cannot compare the relationship we have with any person or group to the one we have with the Creator of the Universe.
 
God’s gift of salvation pays eternal dividends. It benefits us both in the now and the hereafter, while we live on earth and when we step into eternity. There’s no greater prospect than to continue living for the Lord when you leave this earth after you’ve walked with Him all the days of life He grants you to live.  
 
Let us hold fast to the gracious gift of salvation and never despise it. Don’t sacrifice it for the enticing yet passing offers of this world. We guard against future regrets and hurt when we refuse to sell off our birthright in Christ.  
 
Prayer:

Heavenly Father, I appreciate your gift of salvation. Help me not to exchange your grace for worldly glory. In Jesus’ name, Amen._