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Written by Vikki Burke

Abraham was told by God that the land where the Canaanites lived belonged to him and his descendants.

Genesis 12:14-16 says, “Lift your eyes now and look from the place where you are—northward, southward, eastward, and westward; for all the land which you see I give to you and your descendants forever.” Yet Abraham had to embrace it all by faith before he would ever receive it. The land, the descendants, and the wealth would come because he received it first in his heart.

We cannot be casual about our faith when it comes to receiving what God has promised us in His Word. Apathy and indifference are really a slap in the face to the God Who moved heaven to bring this inheritance and dream to mankind.

Esau provides us with a great example of the dangers of taking God’s promises lightly. He was the firstborn son to Isaac, and he was Abraham’s grandson. He would receive the birthright of the firstborn, which was very significant and honored in their society. Yet, this birthright seemed unimportant to Esau.

One day when Esau returned home famished after a hunting trip, his younger twin brother, Jacob, had a meal prepared when he returned. Jacob desperately wanted the birthright his brother took for granted. So Jacob offered Esau the food he was preparing in exchange for his birthright, and Esau readily agreed.

Genesis 25:34 in the New Living Translation says it this way, “Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and lentil stew. Esau ate and drank and went on about his business, indifferent to the fact that he had given up his birthright.”

Esau’s indifference cost him everything this significant inheritance once provided for him. He failed to value the thing he already possessed as most valuable. And he would never be able to regain what once belonged to him. We cannot be like Esau and fail to value the inheritance Jesus paid such a high price to purchase for us.

Jacob followed in the faith of both his father and grandfather. His father Isaac’s faith brought him into an inheritance of land and wealth just as Abraham’s faith had. Genesis 26:13 in the New Living Translation says, “He became a rich man, and his wealth only continued to grow.”

In the same way, Jacob’s faith to pursue his inheritance brought him into the dream God had designed for him. God spoke to Jacob and said, “I will be with you consistently until I have finished giving you everything I have promised” (Genesis 28:15 NLT).

The covenant promise God made to Abraham and his descendents was working. Abraham’s seed was blessed and increasing. We are now Abraham’s descendents and the promised inheritance is still working on our behalf. Galatians 3:29 says, “And now that you belong to Christ, you are the true children of Abraham. You are his heirs, and God’s promise to Abraham belongs to you” (NLT).

It is God’s plan for each of His children to pursue His promise by faith and receive their inheritance. We are cut out of the same mold as Abraham, and God is looking to you and me to take our place and repossess His wealth in the earth today.