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随着年龄的增长，雅各的生活开始和哥哥以扫截然不同。雅各和以扫不仅有着不同的爱好和性格，而且他们父母的偏心很可能加剧了他们的兄弟相争。在雅各的内心深处，可能经常会想起神给利百加的话——预言说“将来大的要服侍小的”。（参创 25:23）

你是否曾经因为觉得自己没有得到应得的东西而沮丧？雅各知道神要祝福他，他就采取行动使自己得祝福。而以扫对汤的渴望扑灭了他的常识，就出卖了自己的长子名分。

或许我们像雅各一样，常常将神的祝福看作我们应该拥有的，甚至是应得的，我们认为自己需要做些交易或讨价还价来抓住它或保住它。然而，从神而来的祝福是我们不配得的礼物。除了基督在十字架上流出的宝血，没有任何东西能买到它。然而，正如雅各的故事将要显明的，我们可能需要一生的时间，才能放下我们与神的工作搏斗的倾向，接受神爱的礼物。

让我们祈求神的灵帮助我们，今天就开始学习这一功课。

As Jacob grew up, his life began to take a very different course from that of his brother, Esau. Not only did Jacob and Esau have different interests and personalities, but their parents' favoritism likely fueled their sibling rivalry. And in the back of Jacob's mind, there was probably often a reminder of God's response to Rebekah—a prophecy saying that "the older [brother] will serve the younger". (see Genesis 25:23)

Have you ever been frustrated by the feeling that you were not getting what you deserved? Knowing that God intended to bless him, Jacob took steps to secure that blessing for himself. And Esau, whose hunger for soup overruled his common sense, cooperated by selling his birthright.

Perhaps like Jacob, we often see God's blessing as something we should have or maybe even deserve and we think we need to seize it or secure it by making some kind of deal or bargain. But blessings from God are an undeserved gift. They cannot be purchased for any price other than the blood Christ gave for us on the cross. Yet as Jacob's story will show us, it can take a lifetime to set aside our human tendency to struggle against the work of God and to receive his love as a gift.

Pray that God's Spirit will begin to help you learn that lesson today.