In this week’s devotional, I want to share some thoughts about ‘Discernment‘, and we’re going to drop anchor into a story of deception found in Genesis 27:18-27.

18 He went to his father and said, “My father.”

   “Yes, my son,” he answered. “Who is it?”

 19 Jacob said to his father, “I am Esau your firstborn. I have done as you told me. Please sit up and eat some of my game, so that you may give me your blessing.” 20 Isaac asked his son, “How did you find it so quickly, my son?”   

“The LORD your God gave me success,” he replied.

 21 Then Isaac said to Jacob, “Come near so I can touch you, my son, to know whether you really are my son Esau or not.” 22 Jacob went close to his father Isaac, who touched him and said, “The voice is the voice of Jacob, but the hands are the hands of Esau.”

23 He did not recognize him, for his hands were hairy like those of his brother Esau; so he proceeded to bless him. 24 “Are you really my son Esau?” he asked. “I am,” he replied.

 25 Then he said, “My son, bring me some of your game to eat, so that I may give you my blessing.”  Jacob brought it to him and he ate; and he brought some wine and he drank.

26 Then his father Isaac said to him, “Come here, my son, and kiss me.” 27 So he went to him and kissed him. When Isaac caught the smell of his clothes, he blessed him and said,

   “Ah, the smell of my son is like the smell of a field that the LORD has blessed.”

 Isaac was getting old, blind, and near the time of his death.  He wanted to pass on his blessing to Esau, and told him to take his weapons out in the country, hunt some wild game, and bring it back to prepare a tasty meal for him.  Isaac was planning to eat that meal, give Esau his blessing, and die shortly after that.

Now Rebekah had overheard this whole conversation between Isaac and Esau.  Since she favored Jacob much more than Esau, she conspired with Jacob to trick Isaac into giving him his blessing instead.  Jacob went out to the flock, and brought in two choice goats for Rebekah to prepare.  He also put on  some of Esau’s best clothes, and covered his hands and neck with goatskins to impersonate his overly hairy brother.

It’s here that we pick up the story in verse 18.  Jacob approaches Isaac, pretending to be Esau and take his brother’s blessing.

There’s a lot that suggests Isaac wasn’t confident Esau was really standing before him, but since he was blind, he had to trust in other senses beyond his sight.  Problem is – he ignored the most important sense of all, his discernment, and messed everything up!

He trusted in his own sense of touch (verse 21) and it misled him.  He trusted in his own sense of taste (verse 25) and it tricked him.  He trusted in his own sense of smell (verse 27) which fooled him as well.

God has given us the amazing ability to discern a situation, and understand what is going on at a deeper level than what our natural senses provide to us.

We see this play out so clearly in Isaac’s situation.  When his natural senses were telling him it was Esau who was with him, his discernment was saying something else.  It was telling him the timing was off, and it was waving multiple warning flags, which prompted Isaac to keep questioning and probing.

To his own peril, Isaac ignored the voice of discernment, and his whole plan to bless Esau was ruined.  There’s an important truth for us to learn from this.

When our own discernment is sending us warnings to slow down, stop or change direction, we shouldn’t ignore them and force our way into trouble.  Instead, we should listen.  We should pause.  We should pay close attention to the checks in our own spirit that came from God’s gift of discernment.

God, help us to pay close attention to the discernment you’ve given us, and lead us into life in the fullest, as we follow you!