Covenanter Witness Vol. 86 - Rparchives.org

in every way to hold onto the blessing — the blessing ofIt is our prof 'oneness.personal integrity and public confidence, of friendshipWe have lost our sense of spiritual value. We haveand freedom — which he had already under-valued and turned our backs on God and His revealed truth (Hisbargained away. The day finally came when his mask of written Word). Every coin we jingle — every piece ofsmiling confidence broke away, and he wept to the state currency — says that in God we trust. We teach ourtreasurer and cried, "Warren, you've got to protect me!" Itwas too late.We are most concerned this morning to find out thereason for Esau's bitter and belated crying. You can readthe record in the Bible and say, "That's easy. This is a manwho has just been tricked and cheated out of whatbelonged to him, and he is pouring out anger and hatredagainst the brother who had cheated him." You wouldn'tbe wrong, of course. And in the moments when wechildren to declare every school day that we are onenation under God. Yet our community is full of parents intheir 30's and 40's who are living in the afterglow of trueChristian conviction, and are not giving their children anymoral or spiritual base on which to build the longed-afterlife (and society) of wholeness and integrity. Our "kids"cry out, "Who is this God that we trust? — this God. underwhose authority we live our lives and run our country?"Do we really value Him and His blessing?suddenly realize an overwhelming loss, we can usuallyRomans 1:21 reads, "Because that when they knewdiscover someone to be mad at.God, they glorified Him not as God, neither were grateful.But the Bible, while candidly exposing the fraud of but became vain in their reasoning and their foolish heartJacob, puts its finger on the root sin in the life of Esau.Esau was a profane man.This is not profanity in the sense of using all theworst swear words; but profanity in the basic sense ofhaving no respect for that which is sacred and spiritual.Esau's sin was not so much his over-valuing the worth ofwas darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, theybecame fools."In conclusion, think back to Jacob and Esau. Whichtwin got the blessing? Certainly not the one who deservedit. Jacob reminds me, at one point in his life, of the smutpeddler or the tavern operator, who takes selfish andone appetizing meal; it was his despising of his birthright. calculating advantage of the weakness of another. NeitherFor a trifle Esau had thrown away the highest honor that a twin deserved the blessing of God — not the one whoson could have. Behind his bitter cry and his irrevocable wanted it and sought after it — not the one who made lightloss lay his lack of any true sense of spiritual value.of it until it was too late — neither one of them. AndWe are listening these days to the cry of a belovedcountry. It is not only individual men and women who areweeping over their losses. It seems to be a whole cultureJacob, who received the blessing and the birthright, hadfinally to admit that he wasn't worth the love andprotection of God, and didn't begin to deserve it.that is crying. We are fast losing our image as a nation of Salvation — then and now — is by the grace of God. Weboasters — a wealthy, confident people, and are becominga nation of bitter weepers.We can find many specific things to cry about — theloss of our sense of security, loss of beauty, loss of purpose,must reach after it and plead for it in faith; ask for it, withan honest confession; and findit in the person and work ofChrist the Savior — in the faithful promise of the covenantGod.of good health, of national integrity. We deeply Happy is the man that choosesresent the fact that sin is being more and more draggedout into the open and flung into our faces.Back of all this bitter, public outcry we need todiscover and confess the root sin of our culture.Jacob's God to be his aid. . .He is blessed whose hope of blessingOn the Lord his God is stayed! (Psalm 146)• • •Glimpses. from page 4a dread reminder from one of his six books, "The Communistssay, and I agree, that the battle is one for theminds of men. But let us not forget that the Communistshave never been reluctant to capture the bodies first andwork on the minds at their leisure."COMING NEXT ISSUECovenanter Witness Reader SurveyThe R. P. Board of Education & PublicationH O M E S P U NV ERSEGOD BLESS AMERICAby Martha Ellen SearleGod bless America.Let us stay free;Make us thankfulfor blessingsThat You shower downon us constantly.Make us loving.Make us thoughtfulof each brotherblack or white.God bless America;Give heartspure sight.MARCH 17. 1971