This generation appears to live by the motto of “I want it and I want it right now!” We desire immediate gratification perhaps more than any other group of people who have ever lived. It is a problem that has affected us at many levels.
Why does the young couple make the decision to commit fornication instead of saving themselves for marriage? Immediate gratification. Why does the married man turn to pornography for sexual fulfillment rather than his wife? Immediate gratification. Why do the depressed turn to alcohol rather than enduring tough times? Immediate gratification. Why do many buy unnecessary items on credit rather than waiting until they can pay cash? Immediate gratification. Every day millions of people make poor decisions because they want to find that special feeling “right now.”
The story of Jacob and Esau’s negotiations over a bowl of “red stuff” (as one translation puts it) is a story of immediate gratification. Esau returns home weary from hunting in the fields. He is tired and hungry. Imagine walking all day to look for wild game and then returning home to the sweet swelling aroma of you brother cooking. We know that Jacob spent his time in the tent more and was his mother’s favorite. It is likely he was a very skilled cook. The lentils referenced in the text of Genesis 25 are most likely a delicacy in that day that had a specific aroma. Esau returns and he wants some of that red stew. The Common English Version reads, “One day, Jacob was cooking some stew, when Esau came home hungry and said, ‘I’m starving to death! Give me some of that red stew right now!’” (Genesis 25:29-30, CEV). There it is—immediate gratification.
We know the story of how Esau profaned and despised his birthright for a bowl of stew. He traded the rights of the first born male to his younger brother for a bowl of red stew. It happened because he wanted some “right now!”
There is a lesson for all of us in Genesis 25. We learn about the danger of “right now.” Too often we think in the “right now” rather than what is to come. Paul said in Philippians 3:12-14 that he pressed on toward the “prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” In other words, Paul didn’t make decisions based on what he wanted right now. Paul made his choices based on what he wanted when he would leave “right now.” Paul’s eyes were fixed on heaven. That is why we as Christians are supposed to be different. We are more concerned about the rewards we receive after we leave this life than the rewards, gadgets, toys, and successes we receive here on earth. I emphasize “supposed to be different” because while that should be who we are, it appears we often fall short.
All of us have traded our birthright for a bowl of stew. Our birthright, or inheritance, as God’s children is eternal life. Every time we sin, we are throwing that inheritance away because we want the pleasures of this earth “right now!” The Hebrew writer said that Esau was “profane” when he sold the birthright (Hebrews 12:15-16, KJV). We too have made ourselves profane by selling our inheritance for the things of this world.
Let’s learn from Esau. Let us all stop selling our inheritance for bowls of stew. Quit giving in to the temptation of immediate gratification. Fix your eyes on heaven. Endure now so you can lay hold of your inheritance when the Day comes.
1 Comment
January 14, 2009 at 7:54 pm
I hate to highlight your illustration instead of your main point. But I can’t help but say that many people are looking for immediate gratification even if the sex is with their spouse. They aren’t interested in true intimacy, just getting the physical gratification.
That being said, your overall point is a main problem for many (including me). I want something and I want it now. I’ll accept a cheap mediocre imitation if it will give me something now rather than wait for the real thing because it takes too long.