The Bible story regarding Jacob acquiring his elder brother’s rightful fatherly blessing through deception has always intrigued me. In patriarchal times, being the firstborn resulted in significant material and familial privileges. In addition, as a descendant of Abraham, the first-born would receive the invaluable spiritual blessing of being the one to carry forward the far-reaching covenant God made with Abraham many years earlier. From the human point of view, though Jacob was born only moments after Esau, being his twin, these blessings rightfully belonged to Esau. From God’s point of view, however, the blessings were to be conferred on the younger brother rather than the older, contrary to the cultural tradition at that time. That this would be the case was divinely revealed to the twins’ mother, Rebekah, at the time of their birth (Gen. 25:23). Despite God’s promise that “the older shall serve the younger,” Rebekah, with Jacob’s full cooperation, decided to secure this favored status by human means, as Isaac had put the wheels in motion in giving his blessing to the elder son, Esau. Thus, on that very day, Jacob stole Esau’s rightful blessing through an elaborate deception.
It is a tragic story, especially when we observe Esau’s reaction when the ruse was up. “As soon as Esau heard the words of his father, he cried out with an exceedingly great and bitter cry and said to his father, ‘Bless me, even me also, O my father!’ But he said, ‘Your brother came deceitfully, and he has taken away your blessing.’ 36 Esau said, ‘Is he not rightly named Jacob? For he has cheated me these two times. He took away my birthright, and behold, now he has taken away my blessing.’ Then he said, ‘Have you not reserved a blessing for me?’ Isaac answered and said to Esau, ‘Behold, I have made him lord over you, and all his brothers I have given to him for servants, and with grain and wine I have sustained him. What then can I do for you, my son?’ Esau said to his father, ‘Have you but one blessing, my father? Bless me, even me also, O my father.’ And Esau lifted up his voice and wept.” (Gen. 27:34-38).
While we quickly recoil at the nefarious actions of Jacob and his mother as told in Gen. 27, it occurred to me some years ago that God-fearing believers, like you and me, steal blessings from our dear brethren (albeit, unwittingly) all the time. One of the greatest blessings our loving Heavenly Father has bestowed upon us is experiencing true joy. The joy that God gives is bestowed by His Spirit (Rom. 14:17; Gal. 5:22), always in connection with the apprehension or manifestation of divine realities in our lives as we walk with our Lord. We can experience God-given joy at the time of our salvation, akin to what we might experience if we were to unearth buried treasure (Matt. 13:44). God gives us His joy when put our full faith and confidence in Him (1 Pet. 1:8) such that we live a life of obedience, as a loving response to His work in our lives (John 15:10-11). We can partake of the joy that only God can give when we enter His presence in worship (Ps. 100:1), see the Living God reach down from heaven and answer our prayers (John 16:24), or when He works a true miracle in our lives (Acts 8:4-8).
Now, the idea that we can steal a blessing (i.e., joy) that God gives to His children might seem counterintuitive at first glance. How can we, finite, fallen creatures, mere mortals, steal from the sovereign, Almighty God of the universe? The answer has to do with one of the most common ways Christians experience Holy Spirit joy, i.e., when we give of ourselves for the sake of the body. This is especially true when we give sacrificially, showing true agape love. Paul invested a lot in the lives of the believers at the church in Phillip, a church which he founded, and referred to them as “my joy and crown” (Phil. 4:1). The writer of Hebrews refers to church leaders who are to shepherd the flock of God with joy (Heb. 12:2). Without a doubt, the greatest example of this is found in the voluntary, substitutionary death of Jesus for the sins of the world. Even though the mere thought of going to the cross brought Jesus a great amount of physical and spiritual anguish (John 12:27; Luke 22:44), it was also for Him a source of great joy (Heb. 12:2).
The idea that God blesses us with His joy when we serve one another is well-known among most Christians who are actively walking with Jesus. It goes hand-in-hand with the doctrine of spiritual gifts, divine enablements that God gives His children the moment they are saved for the building up our fellow-believers unto spiritual maturity (Eph. 4:11-16). Alternately, it also be the case that other believers receive God’s joy when they meet my needs. Paul was overcome with joy in the midst his many trials and tribulations when he heard about the love the Corinthian Church demonstrated for both Titus and himself (2 Cor. 7:4-7). Elsewhere, Paul described the joy he experienced in ministering to the Philippian church being made “complete” by the congregation having the same unity of mind and purpose in Christ (Phil. 2:1-2).
This is precisely where the stealing of blessings come in amongst God’s people. My observation over many years is that frequently believers that love Jesus are quick to meet the needs of other Christians when they have the means to do so. However, they are often reticent to let others come alongside them when they themselves have a personal need. I have often heard many brethren say something like, “I will do that,” in response to a need that has been made known. I have also heard just as many brothers and sisters say, “Oh no, please don’t trouble yourselves, I will be fine,” when their need becomes known and others offer to help. I’ve heard it a hundred times, sometimes coming out of my own mouth. It was a sad eye-opener to me when I learned that in turning away a fellow Christian’s offer to serve me in some way, I was also unknowingly stealing the joy and other blessings that they would receive from God in doing so.
Why do we do this? Possibly out of pride, not wanting others to know how needy we really are. Probably out of a misguided sense of love, not wanting to bring our troubles into the lives of others. Whatever the reason, we need to see it for what it truly is. The truth is, God brings trials and tribulations into our lives not only to make us more like Jesus, but to allow other believers to become like Jesus as well, as they give of themselves for our benefit, and receive God’s joy in doing so.
So, let us not be blessing stealers. Rather, let us be blessing bestowers, not only by sacrificially giving of ourselves to meet the needs of others, but also by making ourselves vulnerable and letting others meet our own needs as well, as the Lord directs them.
