Measuring Success: God's Redemptive Plan Over Material Blessings

Sep 13, 2026

Devotional

Day 1: Pumpkin Vines Without Fruit

The world often celebrates growth that looks impressive but bears no lasting purpose. Esau’s descendants flourished in wealth, power, and influence, yet their story faded from God’s redemptive narrative. Like pumpkin vines that overtake a yard yet yield no fruit, earthly success can dazzle while remaining disconnected from eternal purpose. Jesus warns that even the wicked receive rain and sun—blessings alone don’t confirm divine favor. True fruitfulness grows from abiding in Christ, not accumulating temporary markers of prosperity. [11:01]

“He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.”
(Matthew 5:45, CSB)

Reflection: Where have you equated external growth with spiritual fruitfulness? How might Jesus be inviting you to prioritize abiding in Him over chasing visible success?

Day 2: Edom’s Mountains vs. Canaan’s Promise

Esau settled in Seir’s mountains—a tangible, immediate possession—while Jacob’s family clung to Canaan’s promise. The world’s children grasp what they can hold now; God’s children wait for what He holds forever. Edom’s kings ruled while Israel wandered, yet Canaan’s delayed inheritance carried the weight of redemption. Our culture prizes instant results, but faith thrives in the tension between “not yet” and “will be.” [07:44]

“By faith he stayed as a foreigner in the land of promise, living in tents… For he was looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose architect and builder is God.”
(Hebrews 11:9–10, CSB)

Reflection: What “possessions” tempt you to settle for immediate security? How does Canaan’s promise reframe your definition of true inheritance?

Day 3: Egypt’s Chains and Edom’s Thrones

Israel’s slavery in Egypt contrasted sharply with Edom’s thriving kingdoms. God’s people often seem overshadowed by those indifferent to His covenant. Yet oppression became the furnace where Israel’s identity was forged, while Edom’s power eventually crumbled. When others’ success stirs doubt, remember: God’s plan isn’t threatened by temporary victories. His faithfulness outlasts every dynasty. [13:34]

“For I envied the arrogant… They seem free from common human burdens… When I tried to understand all this, I went into God’s sanctuary.”
(Psalm 73:3–5, 17, CSB)

Reflection: Whose “thrones” make you question God’s timing? How does entering His presence recalibrate your view of earthly power?

Day 4: Mustard Seeds in a World of Oak Trees

God’s kingdom starts small—like a mustard seed—while worldly kingdoms tower like oaks. Esau’s legacy boasted kings and warriors; Jacob’s began with a trickster and a dream. Yet the seed-sized promise carried the Messiah. What seems unimpressive by human metrics often holds divine potential. Our call isn’t to mimic the world’s grandeur but to nurture faithfulness in hidden soil. [15:21]

“The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his field. It’s the smallest of all seeds, but when grown, it’s taller than the garden plants and becomes a tree.”
(Matthew 13:31–32, CSB)

Reflection: Where are you dismissing small obediences as insignificant? How might God be growing an eternal canopy from your mustard-seed faithfulness?

Day 5: Empty Hands, Full Hope

Jacob’s descendants entered Egypt with nothing but a promise; Esau’s clan ruled mountains they could point to on a map. Yet empty-handed hope outshines full-handed possession. Paul clung to Christ’s faithfulness, not his resume. When material metrics disappoint, remember: our “all in hope” outweighs the world’s “all in hand.” [19:58]

“I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that he is able to guard what has been entrusted to me until that day.”
(2 Timothy 1:12, CSB)

Reflection: What empty spaces in your life feel like failure? How does Paul’s confidence in Christ redefine your sense of spiritual abundance?

Sermon Summary

Genesis 36 closes out Esau’s storyline, but it does so in a way that can feel surprising. Esau’s family is growing. His descendants have wealth, possessions, chiefs, kings, and real influence in the world around them. Esau looks successful by many of the measures people are tempted to use. If Jacob and Esau were set side by side without the rest of Scripture, Esau might look like the obvious place for God to hitch His promises.

God’s covenant promises, though, remain with Jacob and his descendants. Esau receives real blessings from the Lord, including descendants, wealth, and a nation. Genesis 36 does not deny those blessings. The text shows that general blessings are not the same thing as God’s redemptive plan. Esau prospers, yet Esau’s line is not the line through which God brings His saving purposes and, ultimately, Jesus.

Esau’s move to Mount Seir also shows that material success can exist outside the land of promise. Esau has possession in hand, while Jacob’s family has promise that must still be waited on. The contrast can test faith. Edom has kings before Israel has a king. Esau’s descendants look established while Jacob’s descendants will later suffer as slaves in Egypt. God’s plans can seem slow when other people appear to be getting everything now.

The image of a huge pumpkin vine makes the point plain. A plant can look green, big, and impressive, yet produce no fruit. Wealth, influence, growing numbers, attendance, budgets, political power, and public standing may be good things, but none of them can finally measure whether God’s redemptive purposes are at work. Jesus says that rain falls on both the just and the wicked. General blessings belong to God’s common kindness, not necessarily to His covenant favor.

God’s redemptive plan is not threatened by the blessings of others. Another person’s victory is not proof that God has overlooked His people. God’s kingdom often begins like a mustard seed, small and unimpressive, yet God brings it to bear in His own time and by His own power. God’s people have often been most faithful when they lacked political and national power.

Matthew Henry’s contrast gets to the heart of it: the children of this world have their all in hand and nothing in hope, while the children of God have their all in hope and next to nothing in hand. Canaan in promise is better than Mount Seir in possession. Jesus must be the measure of God’s plans, because His faithfulness, not visible success, gives God’s people their lasting hope.

Key Takeaways

1. General blessings are not covenant blessings. Esau’s wealth, family, chiefs, and kings were genuine gifts from God, but they did not make Esau the carrier of redemption. Material increase can be received by people who do not know or follow the Lord. Faith must not confuse outward abundance with the deeper work of God’s saving purposes. [10:11]
2. Other people’s success does not threaten hope. Edom’s strength could have looked troubling to Jacob’s descendants, especially when Israel later suffered in Egypt. God’s promises do not become weaker because someone else appears to be prospering. Christ gives a secure inheritance that is not diminished by another person’s victories. [12:59]
3. God’s kingdom often starts small. The mustard seed does not look impressive at the beginning, yet God causes it to grow into something that gives shelter and life. God does not need public influence, national strength, or worldly power to fulfill His purposes. God’s own power has always been enough for His people. [14:30]
4. Canaan in promise is better. Mount Seir gave Esau immediate possession, while Canaan remained a promise for Jacob’s line. The world may have much in hand and nothing in hope, but God’s people have an inheritance secured in Christ. The faithfulness of the Savior makes waiting worthwhile.

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Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[00:09] - How Success Gets Measured
[01:16] - Esau’s Visible Prosperity
[03:52] - Genesis 36 and God’s Redemptive Plan
[05:07] - Esau’s Wives and Mount Seir
[07:31] - Chiefs and Kings in Edom
[09:39] - Three Lessons From Esau’s Life
[10:11] - General Blessings Do Not Equal Redemption
[12:59] - God’s Plan Is Not Threatened
[14:30] - God Does Not Need Worldly Power
[17:10] - Measuring God’s Work by Jesus
[18:04] - Canaan in Promise, Seir in Possession
[19:58] - Let Jesus Be the Measure

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading

Genesis 36
This is the account of Esau (that is, Edom). Esau took his wives from the women of Canaan: Adah daughter of Elon the Hittite, Oholibamah daughter of Anah and granddaughter of Zibeon the Hivite, and Basemath daughter of Ishmael and sister of Nebaioth. Adah bore Eliphaz to Esau, Basemath bore Reuel, and Oholibamah bore Jeush, Jalam, and Korah. These were Esau’s sons, who were born to him in the land of Canaan. Esau took his wives, his sons, his daughters, and all the people of his household, as well as his herds, all his livestock, and all the property he had acquired in Canaan; he went to a land away from his brother Jacob. For their possessions were too many for them to live together, and because of their herds, the land where they stayed could not support them. So Esau (that is, Edom) lived in the mountains of Seir. These are the family records of Esau, father of the Edomites in the mountains of Seir.

These are the names of Esau’s sons: Eliphaz son of Esau’s wife Adah, and Reuel son of Esau’s wife Basemath. The sons of Eliphaz were Teman, Omar, Zepho, Gatam, and Kenaz. Timna, a concubine of Esau’s son Eliphaz, bore Amalek to Eliphaz. These are the sons of Esau’s wife Adah. These are Reuel’s sons: Nahath, Zerah, Shammah, and Mizzah. These are the sons of Esau’s wife Basemath. These are the sons of Esau’s wife Oholibamah daughter of Anah and granddaughter of Zibeon: She bore Jeush, Jalam, and Korah to Edom.

These are the chiefs among Esau’s sons: the sons of Eliphaz, Esau’s firstborn: chief Teman, chief Omar, chief Zepho, chief Kenaz, chief Korah, chief Gatam, and chief Amalek. These are the chiefs descended from Eliphaz in the land of Edom. These are the sons of Adah. These are Reuel’s sons: chief Nahath, chief Zerah, chief Shammah, and chief Mizzah. These are the chiefs descended from Reuel in the land of Edom. These are the sons of Esau’s wife Basemath. These are the sons of Esau’s wife Oholibamah: chief Jeush, chief Jalam, and chief Korah. These are the chiefs descended from Esau’s wife Oholibamah daughter of Anah. These are the sons of Esau (that is, Edom), and these are their chiefs.

These are the sons of Seir the Horite, the inhabitants of the land: Lotan, Shobal, Zibeon, Anah, Dishon, Ezer, and Dishan. These are the Horite chiefs: Lotan, Shobal, Zibeon, Anah, Dishon, Ezer, and Dishan. These are the Horite chiefs: chief Lotan, chief Shobal, chief Zibeon, chief Anah, chief Dishon, chief Ezer, and chief Dishan. These are the Horite chiefs in the land of Seir.

These are the kings who reigned in the land of Edom before any king reigned over the Israelites: Bela son of Beor reigned in Edom; the name of his city was Dinhabah. When Bela died, Jobab son of Zerah from Bozrah reigned in his place. When Jobab died, Husham from the land of the Temanites reigned in his place. When Husham died, Hadad son of Bedad, who defeated Midian in the territory of Moab, reigned in his place; the name of his city was Avith. When Hadad died, Samlah from Masrekah reigned in his place. When Samlah died, Shaul from Rehoboth on the Euphrates River reigned in his place. When Shaul died, Baal-hanan son of Achbor reigned in his place. When Baal-hanan son of Achbor died, Hadar reigned in his place; his city was Pau, and his wife’s name was Mehetabel daughter of Matred daughter of Me-zahab.

These are the names of Esau’s chiefs: chief Timna, chief Alvah, chief Jetheth, chief Oholibamah, chief Elah, chief Pinon, chief Kenaz, chief Teman, chief Mibzar, chief Magdiel, and chief Iram. These are the Edomite chiefs, according to their settlements in the land they possessed. Esau was the father of the Edomites. [00:01:16]

Matthew 5:45
“so that you may be children of your Father in heaven. For he causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.” [00:12:34]

Matthew 13:31–32
He presented another parable to them: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his field. It’s the smallest of all seeds, but when grown, it’s taller than the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the sky come and nest in its branches.” [00:15:18]

2 Timothy 1:12
“That is why I suffer as I do. But I am not ashamed, because I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that he is able to guard what has been entrusted to me until that day.” [00:19:50]

Observation questions

What details in Genesis 36 show that Esau’s family had become prosperous and influential, rather than remaining a small household? [00:07:00]
What does Genesis 36 say caused Jacob and Esau to live separately, and where did Esau settle?
What striking comparison does Genesis 36 make between Edom and Israel concerning kings? [00:07:43]
In Matthew 5:45, what does God give to both the righteous and the unrighteous, and how does that fit with Esau’s prosperity? [00:12:30]

Interpretation questions

Esau received descendants, wealth, chiefs, and kings, yet Jacob’s family remained the line of God’s redemptive promise. What does this distinction show about the difference between God’s general blessings and His saving purposes? [00:10:11]
Why might Edom’s kings and visible success have been a test of faith for Jacob’s descendants, especially when Israel later suffered in Egypt? [00:12:59]
Jesus compares God’s kingdom to a mustard seed that begins small but grows large. How does this picture correct the assumption that God’s work must always look powerful, popular, or immediately successful? [00:15:18]
Paul says, “I know whom I have believed,” while suffering. How does knowing Christ Himself give believers confidence when their circumstances do not look successful? [00:19:46]

Application questions

What are the usual measurements of success that most tempt you—income, possessions, career progress, comfort, influence, family reputation, attendance, or something else? How might those measurements quietly shape your view of God’s faithfulness? [00:00:16]
Is there someone whose success has recently made you wonder whether God has overlooked you? What would it look like to bring that comparison honestly to the Lord rather than letting it grow into resentment? [00:12:59]
A pumpkin vine can look large, green, and impressive while producing no fruit. What might “looking healthy” without bearing spiritual fruit look like in a person’s life? What fruit of faith would you like God to grow in you? [00:10:54]
God gives sun and rain to both the good and the evil. How can you thank God for material blessings without treating them as proof that everything in your life is spiritually healthy? [00:12:34]
Where are you tempted to believe that more public influence, political power, money, or numbers would solve the church’s deepest needs? How does God’s power change the way you think about those desires? [00:16:16]
What promise of God are you currently waiting to see more fully—growth in a relationship, freedom from a struggle, provision, healing, or someone coming to faith? How can “Canaan in promise” be better than “Mount Seir in possession” in that situation? [00:18:37]
What would it look like this week to measure God’s work in your life by the faithfulness of Jesus rather than by what you have in hand right now? [00:19:27]

Sermon Clips

38s

#GodsPlanSecure

“God's redemptive plan is not threatened by the blessings of others. It's not threatened by the blessings of others. Sometimes we may be tempted to think that God's plans in our lives must have gone awry because we see what someone else is experiencing. Maybe the the general blessings like Esau. He's prospering. There's kings of people being descended from them. And if you're part of Jacob's descendants and you haven't experienced that yet, you might think, well, something's wrong here.”

45s

#BlessingsDontEqualCalling

“And I say that to say sometimes in our lives we see maybe the the blessings of others or or maybe not even looking at others. Maybe there are just certain general material blessings we're hoping for, which is not bad. But we think, gosh, Lord, I'm not getting this thing that I'm hoping for. What gives? Where are you, Lord? Where are your your plans for me? The general blessings don't equal God's redempted plans for you. Doesn't mean that those things are bad. It just means they don't equal what God is really trying to work in our lives.”

34s

#MoreIsntAlwaysGodsBlessing

“General blessings do not equal God's redemptive plan. It's not as simple as saying, well, more possession, more wealth, more physical growth. That that equals, you know, God's covenant blessings. The blessings that he gives to his his own chosen people. That may not be the case. Just because something looks good on the outside doesn't necessarily mean anything for what it looks like on the inside.”

24s

#HopeInChristNotStuff

“Measure God's plans in your life by the faithfulness and trustworthiness of your savior. We may not have all the material things in hand that we want in life, But we have all the hope we could ever imagine in him.”

23s

#JesusIsOurMeasure

“God's plans are ultimately measured by Jesus and the hope that we have in him, like we sang about earlier in the service. How much are we conforming to this life and this hope, regardless of what kind of material things happen around us?”

41s

#MustardSeedKingdom

“But much like Jesus says in Matthew 13 verses 31 through 32 where he talks about God's kingdom, where it's like a mustard seed. It starts out small. It's the the tiniest of seeds. Have you ever seen the the mustard seed? But yet, as it it grows and grows, it flourishes and provides shade, Jesus says, for all kinds of the birds of the air. God's kingdom may start small. It may not always look like it's prospering, but God is is bringing his plans to bear.”

58s

#PowerFromGodAlone

“The only power God's people have needed is God's own power. And although, again, Esau is prospering, Esau is developing into this nation, although it may not seem like that was happening for Jacob, it is still Jacob and his descendants who are the carrier of the promise. And it is true. Although sometimes this may, you know, cause tension in us. It is true that god's people have historically been at their most faithful and most effective when they lack political and and national power and influence. Even though, we may be tempted to think, well, God, if you're blessing us, these are the things that will happen to us. Our power and influence will multiply like we saw, but not necessarily.”

65s

#PromisesFollowJacob

“And so although Esau doesn't represent God's redemptive plan, his covenant promises. We see that that Esau is prospering. They're not just some, you know, backwoods little, you know, community, right? There are kings and people connected to Esau. Again, we didn't know anything about scripture. If somebody just presented Jacob and Esau to us, we would say, wow. The Lord needs to hitch his promises to Esau. Because look how important he has become look at what he is acquiring. Look at his success. Look at his growth. Surely that will be attractive for the Lord to be able to say, this is where my promises belong. This is where, my plans are headed. But that's not how God measures his own plans. It isn't the only way to understand God's redemptive plans in our lives either.”

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Caleb Bittler This sermon · AI assistant

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