“Lest there be any fornicator or profane person like Esau, who for one morsel of food sold his birthright.”
—Hebrews 12:16
OUR WORLD is filled with two types of people: believers and unbelievers. Believers are those who have true faith, believe God’s Word, and seek to live according to God’s will for God’s glory. Unbelievers, on the other hand, are those who do not have true faith, do not believe God’s Word, and are only concerned with living according to their own will and pleasure. Esau, an unbeliever, sought only earthly pleasures and it earned him everlasting torment in hell. A bowl of lentils meant more to Esau than everlasting life. “Lest there be any fornicator or profane person like Esau, who for one morsel of food sold his birthright” (Hebrews 12:16).
ACCORDING TO SCRIPTURE, three things are required to make an action right. First, it must proceed from true faith “for whatever is not from faith is sin” (Romans 14:23). We also read in Hebrews 11:6, “For without faith it is impossible to please God.” Secondly, it must be done according to the Law of God and (thirdly) unto His glory (1 Corinthians 10:31). In other words, for an action to be right in God’s sight it must be done in accordance with His Law, and it must be done from a proper motive, which only flows out of a heart of true faith. However, if the action itself is unlawful, no proper motive can make it right. On the other hand, the action may be lawful, but if the motive is wrong then the action is sinful. Bad motives in good actions are like dead flies in sweet ointments (Ecclesiastes 10:1).
MANY UNBELIEVERS do things outwardly which God requires and they abstain from some things which God forbids, not because they love God or His Law, but because it promotes their health, wealth, and honor, or because of fear of punishment. Plowing a field is itself a lawful action and many unbelievers plow their fields, yet the Scripture declares that “A haughty look, a proud heart, and the plowing of the wicked are sin” (Proverbs 21:4). Everything done by unbelievers is sinful, even the most common and necessary daily activities such as eating and drinking (Romans 14:23). Unless a man is born from above by the Spirit of God all his works are evil and defiled with sin in God’s sight and are worthy and deserving of eternal hell. “The way of the wicked is an abomination to the LORD, but He loves him who follows righteousness” (Proverbs 15:9). “The thoughts of the wicked are an abomination to the LORD, but the words of the pure are pleasant” (Proverbs 15:26).
WHAT ABOUT YOU? How does God view your works? Are you born again spiritually by the Holy Spirit? Is your heart right before God? Do you have true faith? Pray for God’s continual grace in your life and trust not in your works, your faith, or anything else of man. TRUST JESUS CHRIST! He alone is our only hope! “Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).
Friday Devotional: April 17, 2026
In Christ,
Pastor S. Henry
