Catechesis Notes for the Week—The Blessing of the Lord’s Grace—Esau had despised his birthright. Jacob was a deceiver who coveted his brother’s position. Neither son of Isaac deserved their father’s blessing. But in the scheming and conniving of the story of Isaac Blesses Jacob we learn that in every way God’s promise of salvation in Christ rests upon God’s grace alone for the unworthy sinner. Jacob was, no doubt, proud of himself for believing that he had tricked his father into giving him the blessing. But in reality, it was God’s will from before the birth of Jacob and Esau that Jacob should receive the blessing. This teaches us that God’s blessing rests upon His grace for the sinner and not upon any merit, position, standing, or priority of birth order. Esau Does Not Receive the Blessing to be the “son of the promise” in the lineage of Jesus, but God’s favor to Esau was, nevertheless, included in Jacob’s blessing because, according to the promise, the Seed of Abraham would bring the blessing of salvation to all nations. Over the course of his lifetime, Jacob would be humbled, and his pride would be crucified. He would learn to depend upon the grace of God when he might have otherwise been tempted to believe that he deserved it. In Heaven Is Opened at Bethel, Jacob learned the important lesson that wherever God’s Word of grace is proclaimed, there the Lord is present with His gifts. This is why Jacob named that place Bethel, which means “House of God.” In Jacob Marries Leah and Rachel, the conniving trickster was outfoxed by his uncle Laban who gave Jacob Leah instead of Rachel. The competition for Jacob’s affections by the four women that gave birth to all his children teaches us the reality of human sin and the frailty of the flesh for which we all need a Savior. Despite the rivalry and bitterness between their mothers, the Children of Jacob would share in the gift of salvation by grace that came through God’s promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. This story teaches us that all human life is sacred. All human life is the object of God’s love in Christ and in the promise of His Gospel.CP221120