He had become a sensual man. Not sensual as in erotic, but sensual as in he relied upon and was driven by his senses. What he could see, what he could feel and taste and smell, what he could hear, that’s what he counted on. Instead of spending his life attuning a spiritual discernment, he settled for dependence on the five associated with his flesh. And as his flesh aged . . . as his body broke down . . . so did that which he had come to rely on. In the end, what would have saved Isaac and his house a lot of trouble, was the sixth sense.

Before the boys were born, Isaac was a praying man (Genesis 25:21). Before their birth, he and his wife knew communion with the Lord and the Lord revealed to them that “the older shall serve the younger” (25:23). But it seems that, over time, Isaac’s “sixth sense,” his interaction with the things of God, had became dull . . . eventually, it seems, flat-lining. Though God had appeared to Isaac (26:2-4) and affirmed the promise that was his through his father, Abraham, perhaps it was his success that drew Isaac’s heart away from that which would be and, instead, fixated on that which was . . . that which he could see, hear, feel, smell, and TASTE . . . major emphasis on taste!

He loved to eat . . . especially wild game . . . any wonder that Esau the hunter, the older son, became his favorite (25:28). Not only could Esau catch ’em . . . the boy could cook ’em! Isaac melted at the thought of eating at Chez Esau’s.  As he listened to the sounds from the kitchen where Esau prepared the meal, he anticipated gazing on the glory of the presentation of the meal on the plate.  He could imagine the aroma of the game prepared with Esau’s secret sauce.  He knew that feeling that first bite in his mouth would send a shiver down his back. And then . . . then the taste buds would explode. Mmmm . . . mmmm . . . good!

Ok . . . maybe not. But you get the idea. Isaac had become a man who was driven by his appetite . . . and, as a result, lost his connection with the Divine.

As a result, he determined to bless the older rather the younger, though God had revealed otherwise. As a result, Rebekah and Jacob schemed to trick the old man into giving the younger son the blessing that was his anyways. And because he had only his five senses to guide him . . . and because he was an old man and those senses were breaking down . . . he was a prime target for the deception (Genesis 27).

He had lost his sight and had to rely on his other four senses. Though he could hear, that too was failing and he didn’t trust his hearing.  And so, even though the voice sounded like Jacob’s, he couldn’t be sure it wasn’t Esau and would have to go to his other senses to determine who had come asking for the blessing. The goat hair on Jacob’s arms sure felt consistent with Esau’s hairiness . . . and when he drew Jacob near to himself, because Jacob was wearing Esau’s clothes, he sure smelled like his brother the hunter. But it was the meal that sealed the deal. It was “that taste” . . . mmmm, mmmm, good! . . . which told the old man to go ahead and give the schemer the blessing.

How sad! That which he had relied upon to lead him through life, the capabilities of the flesh, were failing and, thus, were failing him. Had he instead cultivated his walk with the LORD . . . had he chosen to develop his sixth sense, a spiritual discernment founded on the word of God and fine tuned by the Spirit of God, this son of promise who had started so well would not have finished so poorly.

O’ to be led by the Spirit . . . and not by the flesh . . . that we might know the ways of God . . . and not be deceived by the ways of men.

By His grace . . . for His glory . . .