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38th Street Church of Christ 3904 38th Street NW Canton, Ohio 44718 330-492-5523 Fax: 330-493-7119 |
“Face To Face With God: Jacob” |
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I. Introduction.
A. In Genesis 32, you find the incident in the life of Jacob
where he “wrestled” with God all through one night at
“. . . the ford of Jabbok” (Genesis 32:22).1. This scene from Scripture has stirred the
imaginations of many, throughout the centuries.
Some see it as a heroic struggle in which Jacob,
exhausted and crippled, overcomes divine
resistance to his desires, and succeeds in getting
from God what he wants.2. To others it is simply a representation of
persistence – one that presents us with a challenge:
who will “wrestle” in prayer – as Jacob did – and
prevail – as Jacob did? But, did he really prevail
over God? Does anyone?3. Before we jump to any conclusions, we need to look
at the narrative and see clearly what it actually says
to us. We need to see why there was this “struggle”
at all. If God is almighty, and people are weak, why
wasn’t Jacob overwhelmed at once? Did God need
to cripple Jacob in order to defeat him? Can a
mouse wrestle with an elephant – and, would the
elephant be concerned if the mouse tried to do so?B. First, notice that Jacob is not the aggressor: verse 24 says,
“. . . a man wrestled with him until the breaking of day.”
If someone attacks you, you have two choices: either strike
back, or run away. But, if someone wrestles with you, you
have no choice. Even if you desire to get away, you are
obliged to wrestle, too. You struggle either to break free,
or to teach your opponent a lesson.1. Jacob didn’t wrestle because he chose to, but
because he had to.2. God comes down to Jacob’s size. He refuses to use
His great power, and presence, to unfair advantage
over an obviously weaker opponent. That is, until
He sees that Jacob has no intention of yielding to
Him.3. Jacob had been struggling against God all of his
life. The scene at Jabbok symbolizes that lifelong
resistance. Here is a real turning point for Jacob.
Endeavor as he would to resist God’s goodness,
God was determined to help, and bless, him.C. When you look at Jacob’s life up to Jabbok, you see
how he had struggled against God. He was born as a twin
to his brother, Esau, who was older than he by just a
moment. Esau emerged to become a hunter, physically
strong, and very impulsive. Jacob also was strong – but
in will; he would fight – or deceive – for as long as it took
to get what he wanted.1. Before the boys were born, God revealed to their
mother, Rebekah, what He had planned: “But the
children struggled together within her; and she
said, ‘If all is well, why am I like this?’ So she
went to inquire of the Lord. And the Lord said to
her: ‘Two nations are in your womb. Two peoples
shall be separated from your body; one people
shall be stronger than the other, and the older shall
serve the younger.’ ” (Genesis 25:22-23).a. Jacob surely must have known of this
prophecy, about the promise God had made.
But, neither Rebekah nor Jacob took that
promise seriously enough.b. Jacob had a right to superiority over Esau –
but they didn’t trust God to give what He’d
promised.c. If Jacob was to get his due, it would have to
be by playing on Esau’s weaknesses, and by
deception. Jacob devoted his early life to
these objectives and to gain, by them, what
God planned to give him anyway.2. In the end, Jacob got just what God had promised –
no more and no less. What he missed was the
peace, and fellowship, with God that he would
otherwise have had. Instead of peace, Jacob had
21 years of anxiety. He “stole” his brother’s
birthright, and he deceived his father, Isaac, to get
his brother’s blessing.3. Jacob’s (and Rebekah’s) lies could not be undone.
There was no way to appease Esau’s rage and
bitterness when he discovered what had happened.
Jacob (whose name means “supplanter”) lived up
to his name. He gained, by his own methods, what
God intended for him. But, he lost peace at home,
and fellowship with his family. He fled for his life
from the anger of Esau.D. And soon after he left home, he had a first encounter with
God.II. Conquered By Dependency: Jacob.
A. As he slept one night, under the open sky, with a stone for
his pillow, Jacob had a dream (Genesis 28). He saw,
“. . . a ladder . . . set up on the earth, and its top reached to
heaven: and there the angels of God were ascending and
descending on it” (verse 12).1. Now, God made Jacob a series of promises: he
assured Jacob that the land all around him would be
given to his descendents (verse 14). And, God
guaranteed Jacob of His presence, and protection,
until Jacob returned home (verse 15).2. Jacob awoke – overwhelmed and a little frightened,
and anointed his pillow-stone and called that place
“Bethel” – “The House Of God.” And, he took an
oath: Genesis 28:20-22 (READ).3. Jacob’s oath was typical of his life thus far. He
adopts a “wait-and-see” attitude regarding God’s
promises (“If” God would be with him, and “if”
he’d be returned safely home, then “. . . the Lord
shall be my God.” And, then Jacob would devote
a tenth of his wealth to God).B. As his life developed further, Jacob still attempted to help
the promises to be fulfilled, by every means he could think
of.1. I suppose we’d like to think we’d be different from
Jacob. Like to think we’d come off spiritually
superior. “Had God appeared to me in a vision, and
given me such promises . . .”2. But, would we really be different from Jacob? With
all our additional knowledge of the ways of God,
with all of Scripture to draw upon to see God
fulfilling His promises, with the evidence of prayers
answered – we may still find ourselves being like
Jacob.3. After all, aren’t we taught: “God helps those who
help themselves?” In fact, it’s no sign of lack of
faith to actively work to secure the answer to our
prayers. It all depends on our motive for doing so.a. Do I work because I’m trusting in God to
fulfill His promises?b. Or, do I work because I want to insure my
securing what I want?c. One type of activity comes from faith; the
other from a lack of faith.4. In Jacob’s case, there’s no doubt what the feeling
was (“if . . . if . . .”). To ask God for something,
and to know the Scriptures which tell us of the
goodness, and mercy, of God, requires us to be
honest, as Jacob was with himself. We either rely
upon God’s power to answer our prayers in the
right way, at the right time, in accordance with His
will, or we believe in God and His power, but don’t
believe a little insurance would hurt.C. For treachery, and deception, Jacob met his match in his
uncle, Laban. (Worked 14 years to marry woman he really
loved, Rachel.)D. Both Jacob and Laban did their utmost to swindle, or
outwit, the other (Genesis 30:30-43). Finally, Jacob
sneaked away from Laban, taking his family, his servants,
and his flocks with him. But, now, a greater fear comes to
him, the fear of Esau. So, Jacob arranged his family and
his flocks as a general might arrange an army.
(Genesis 32:13-21).1. After crossing the Jabbok, Jacob found himself
alone in the night, uncertain of what the new day
would bring, and of how Esau would receive him.2. It was then, and there, that God began to deal with
Jacob so forcefully. It was not Jacob trying to win
something from God. If we approach God with a
request in prayer, and feel the success of that
prayer depends upon our efforts, we’re likely to be
disappointed. But, if we approach God with a
request in prayer, and have faith, we can realize
success. Faith is the attitude that says, “Whether I
feel God is there, and listening, or not, whether I
feel He will heed me or not, He tells me he does
hear, and does answer, and I’m going to count on
that.”E. Jacob wrestled with God because he had no choice. He
was defending himself, not attacking. Yet, the text states
he won a victory (Genesis 32:28): “ . . .Your name shall no
longer be called Jacob, but Israel; for you have struggled
with God and with men, and have prevailed.”).1. The name “Israel” means “God strove.” Also, it
refers to a prince who is with God.2. How, though, did Israel (Jacob) “prevail?”
a. Picture the wrestling with God as God
seeking to help Jacob understand something.
He attempts to convince Jacob he means
him no harm. His intentions are not
malicious, but merciful.b. Jacob is too afraid to get the lesson, at first.
All of his life, he’s been impressed with one
fact: it’s not safe to trust anyone. So, he
wrestles on – terrified – but unwilling to
yield. Then, suddenly, incredible pain, and
a useless leg.c. Through Jacob’s fog of fear and pain, God
says: “Let Me go, for the day breaks”
(verse 26).3. Let Him go? How can he? Jacob isn’t even sure
he can walk.4. Let Him go? How dare he? At some point the
awful knowledge has gripped him that the One
whose breast he leans on, sweating and gasping, is
the God of his fathers. He could kill Jacob with a
glance. For once, Jacob’s tenacity is turned in the
right direction: “. . . ‘I will not let You go unless
You bless me!” (verse 26).a. Here are the words God has waited to hear
for over 40 years. He wanted Jacob to
recognize his personal helplessness, and
cast himself on God’s mercy, long before.
He didn’t really want it to come to a “no
choice” situation.b. God’s response comes swiftly then. He will
bless; He does bless – when we’re humbled
and conquered by our dependency, as Jacob
was.III. Conclusion.
A. Are we compelling God to wrestle with us? What makes
us resist Him? As we offer prayer to Him, what hinders
Him from responding positively to us?1. If it’s our focus on the material over the spiritual,
He wants to give to us out of His abundance.2. If it’s our personal fears and uncertainties, He wants
to assure us of His power, and free us from fear’s
grasp.3. If it’s our need to do things our way, He wants us to
see how foolish, and futile, that is.B. God’s desire is not that we be brought to some extreme
crisis, or circumstance, where we have no choice but to
yield to Him, and accept His grace. But, He’ll go as far
as we want Him to.C. Trust in God should be first, not last. We have to learn, and
yield to, the most basic lesson of prayer: We are helpless,
and have no hope except in God.D. Jacob was let go; the “Man” disappeared, and Jacob stood
uncertainly, panting, and gently testing his painful leg to
see if he could walk. “ . . . I have seen God face to face.”
His life would never be the same after that night. God let
Jacob yield to Him, and Jacob appealed to God to bless
him.E. Face to face with God – how do we come away from such
an encounter?