“STUFF” – an old French word, “estoffe” that derived its meaning from “stopfon,” which means “to stop up.” In English we see this understanding when stuff is used in the verb form, like cramming “stuff” into a closet, filling the trunk of one’s car, or jamming clothes into a closet or suitcase. Exactly how one feels after consuming too much lunch or supper!
Additionally, according to Webster’s New World Dictionary, “stuff” in our vocabulary speaks of material goods, like household items and personal belongings and/or the substances out of which things are produced or manufactured. In a general sense, unspecified items may also be referred to as “stuff.” I don’t know about you, but my world consists of (and seems to be filled with), lots of “stuff!”
Some “stuff” is worthless junk, while other is of significance and valuable, yet it’s all still called “stuff.” There’s good stuff and bad stuff, big stuff and small stuff, fun stuff and sad stuff, great stuff and petty stuff, excellent stuff, average stuff, and inferior stuff, strong stuff and weak stuff, important stuff and trivial stuff, beautiful stuff and ugly stuff, healthy stuff and some stuff that’s not so good for you. Some stuff is material and physical, while other stuff is physiological, emotional and spiritual — whatever the stuff, there’s plenty of it.
In Genesis 25:30, Esau (a godless person according to Hebrews 12:16) begs his brother Jacob
Please let me have a swallow of that red stuff (NASU) (translated pottage in KJV however the word does not appear in the Hebrew text or Greek Septuagint) there, for I am famished (worn out, weary). Therefore his name was called Edom (red).
By his own choice of immediate gratification and pleasure, Esau became a godless person, choosing to love and embrace the things (stuff; in this case food) of this world and his earthly life in exchange for the blessings of God, spiritual peace, and hope (confident expectation) for his future.
Esau gave up:
- His right to the priesthood – Ex. 22:29.
- A double portion of his father’s estate – Deut. 21:17.
- His role in the family – Gen. 27:29, 37; 49:3.
- His potential role in the Messianic promise/linage of first born sons.
- His rights of primogeniture (conveying special blessings upon his descendants – which were among the most noble, honorable, and spiritual in the ancient world).
Esau undervalued “God stuff” and overvalued “red stuff” which filled his belly and brought temporary satisfaction.
In John 6:27-28, Jesus issues a warning that might help us gain some understanding about “stuff,”
Do not work for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you, for on Him the Father, God, has set His seal.
Nearly everyone can recall the Parable Of The Sower And Soils in Mark 4:18-19 where the good seed of God is sown among thorns, “but the worries of the world (stuff), and the deceitfulness of riches (stuff), and the desires for other things (stuff) enter in and choke” out God’s Word/Truth. Instead of trading the “stuff” of God for the “stuff” of this world, have you ever considered doing the exact opposite? May we, as believers in Christ, be found laying down the “stuff” of this world in order to gain “God stuff!” II Peter 1:8 says “For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
I pray all our “stuff” becomes useful and fruitful! Just think about it. — Pastor Frank