I would certainly be remiss if I did not call attention to the sermon Cultivating Godly Character, the next in the excellent series on the Book of Genesis by the Rev. William Klock. This sermon is based on Genesis 25:29-34, the account of Esau's selling his birthright to Jacob for a meal of pottage. Fr. Klock takes this account and uses it to teach us some profound lessons about character--our own as well as theirs. This is what we learn from this account about Esau:We can learn a lot from Esau and Jacob. The real proof of life is personal character. As the story starts, Esau is the more likeable of the two brothers, but when he sells himself short because he despised God’s gift he shows himself for what he truly is. In George Eliot’s book, Romola, the heroine marries a hedonistic man named Tito, and Eliot describes the consequences of his poor choices in a way that fits Esau just as well. Her words have become famous as she described “that inexorable law of the human souls, that we prepare ourselves for sudden deeds by the reiterated choice of good or evil which gradually determines character.” The responses we make to sudden situations are shaped by our character, but our character itself is formed by our choices for good or for evil. Even though we are all fallen and sinful men and women, no one becomes the basest of sinners overnight. Even the worst of us has a fallen nature tempered by God’s common grace. Esau’s character a character that loved the flesh and saw no value in the things of God was formed long before the day that Jacob cheated him. Our character is always growing and being shaped, and when a crisis comes we act, not just based on what we want at the moment, but also according to what we really are, because our wishes and our desires are the outward expression of our actual character. Esau had no spiritual insight, no appreciation for the blessings of the covenant that God had established with his grandfather, Abraham. He just cared about today and what he needed to enjoy today. When the test came the real man was revealed. I think we can also see in the story of Jacob and Esau that the real test of character doesn’t usually come in the big decisions we have to make, but in the little, day-to-day things. When we want to know how others perceive us, don’t think about those long-term decisions we make with a lot of thought we can put our best foot forward there but instead look at your responses to the little things things that require instant decisions and actions where you don’t have time to think. In Esau’s case, it seemed like such a small thing; he was hungry and wanted something to eat, but something as small as making a deal for some soup was the real means of testing and evaluating his character. It’s a pretty pathetic picture. Mr. Toughguy, big and strong, comes home and can’t wait a few minutes for some food. No doubt he came into camp with fresh game. How long would it have taken to make a meal out of some of that game? If you look at history, you’ll see all sorts of example where small things and what looked at the time like insignificant choices were major turning points. God tests us more often by the small things in life than he does by great crises. Esau teaches us that it’s imperative that we subdue the flesh to the spirit. Esau was only interested in feeding his body. He didn’t understand that feeding our souls with the things of God is even more important he was thinking about the short time of his earthly existence and gave no thought to eternity. God has created us as physical beings, yes. And he doesn’t want us to give up the things that give us physical health and wellbeing, but he doesn’t want us to sacrifice our eternal souls to do it. Jesus taught us that seeking after the things of God is to be our first and foremost priority, and that when we first seek his Kingdom, he will take care of all our other needs. It’s critical that we put God first in our lives. As far as we can tell, there was no room for God in Esau’s life. He was an active guy, but in everything he did there was one part of his life that was uncultivated he was god-less. He was profane outside the holy, outside the sacred. He lived for the present and if he had a thought for the future it was for physical things, not Godly and eternal things. But that’s nothing new. We have everything we could possibly want. Even the poor in our society are rich by global standards. But with all the worldly eases and comforts that we have, so many of us have no room for God. The first words of Holy Scripture are “In the beginning God.” When God is first in our lives, everything else falls into place.I suppose we might say that if we do not give priority to feeding our souls, we essentially starve them--and can you imagine what a lifetime of spiritual starvation would do to one's spiritual life? Such is what happened to Esau, that he could unthinkingly trade his birthright for a meal of soup. May we truly seek to learn from his example. My thanks to Fr. Klock for this thoughtful sermon.