Jacob was returning home after 20 years of running. You know the story, he tricked his father into blessing him and his brother was angry and to save his life, Jacob was sent away to his uncle’s home in Padan Aram. Now, he is finally coming home.
So Jacob went on his way, and the angels of God met him. 2 When Jacob saw them, he said, “This is God’s camp.” And he called the name of that place Mahanaim
You might recall, when Jacob ran from his home, he spent the night at Bethel where he saw angels. Once again, as he is coming back, he sees a band of angels traveling with him. He notices a heavenly security force escorting him.
3 Then Jacob sent messengers before him to Esau his brother in the land of Seir, the country of Edom. 4 And he commanded them, saying, “Speak thus to my lord Esau, ‘Thus your servant Jacob says: “I have dwelt with Laban and stayed there until now. 5 I have oxen, donkeys, flocks, and male and female servants; and I have sent to tell my lord, that I may find favor in your sight.”’”
Not knowing what to expect, Jacob sends delegation ahead of him seeking to make peace with Esau. He wanted to make clear to Esau, why he was returning. He wished to let Esau know that he had no desire to claim any of Esau’s possessions. In short, he was asking for permission to travel through Seir.
6 Then the messengers returned to Jacob, saying, “We came to your brother Esau, and he also is coming to meet you, and four hundred men are with him.” 7 So Jacob was greatly afraid and distressed; and he divided the people that were with him, and the flocks and herds and camels, into two companies. 8 And he said, “If Esau comes to the one company and attacks it, then the other company which is left will escape.”
Jacob was shown the army of Angels traveling with him yet at hearing the news of Esau coming to meet him, he is full of fear. He starts to figure out a way to save his possessions.
9 Then Jacob said, “O God of my father Abraham and God of my father Isaac, the Lord who said to me, ‘Return to your country and to your family, and I will deal well with you’: 10 I am not worthy of the least of all the mercies and of all the truth which You have shown Your servant; for I crossed over this Jordan with my staff, and now I have become two companies. 11 Deliver me, I pray, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau; for I fear him, lest he come and attack me and the mother with the children. 12 For You said, ‘I will surely treat you well, and make your descendants as the sand of the sea, which cannot be numbered for multitude.’”
First, Jacob tried to reconcile with his brother peacefully. Secondly, he panicked and started to plot as soon as he heard about Esau and his 400 men. But, at last, he resorts to prayer. It is a powerful prayer. He understands the grace God has shown him. How he had been blessed and testifies to grace and goodness of God. Jacob is praying with persistence. He is taking the promises and reminding God “you promised”. We need to learn to pray like Jacob, with persistence. I believe all of us want to have a great prayer life. I will admit, I need my prayer life to develop and deepen. Remember, disciple did not ask Jesus to teach them, how to preach or heal the sick, nor did they ask him to teach them to cast out demons or to perform a miracle. They simply asked him to teach them to pray. They probably noticed first hand that the key to His strength was His communication with father and time he spent in prayer. Like Jacob, we turn to prayer only when we have nowhere to turn. Take the promise of the word and argue with the Lord. Like Jacob, repeat the promises given to us in scripture regarding salvation, protection, direction, healing, health, peace, guidance, faith. As you repeat them, you will be reminded of them. It is not the God who needs the reminder but rather you. So as you pray these promises, you will be encouraged and your focus will turn to the ability of God. Let us learn from Jacob, Like him, we try to resolve problems in our own strength and turn to God only when we have no other options available. We all need to learn to PRAY first and then act according to the guidance of the word. One more thing to remember, do not pray boastfully but rather humbly, knowing that promises of God are based on his GRACE not because of our merit. Please keep in mind, if you have a need for transportation, God has promised you a car not necessarily Mercedes. It is important to note that Jacob based his prayer on God’s word. An effective prayer is in harmony with God’s word and will.
13 So he lodged there that same night, and took what came to his hand as a present for Esau his brother: 14 two hundred female goats and twenty male goats, two hundred ewes and twenty rams, 15 thirty milk camels with their colts, forty cows and ten bulls, twenty female donkeys and ten foals. 16 Then he delivered them to the hand of his servants, every drove by itself, and said to his servants, “Pass over before me, and put some distance between successive droves.” 17 And he commanded the first one, saying, “When Esau my brother meets you and asks you, saying, ‘To whom do you belong, and where are you going? Whose are these in front of you?’ 18 then you shall say, ‘They are your servant Jacob’s. It is a present sent to my lord Esau; and behold, he also is behind us.’” 19 So he commanded the second, the third, and all who followed the droves, saying, “In this manner you shall speak to Esau when you find him; 20 and also say, ‘Behold, your servant Jacob is behind us.’” For he said, “I will appease him with the present that goes before me, and afterward I will see his face; perhaps he will accept me.” 21 So the present went on over before him, but he himself lodged that night in the camp.
Here is the second lesson in prayer. So many times even after praying, we go back to plotting and scheming like Jacob. Although he had just prayed and in process was reminded of God’s promises, he is trying to appease Esau by sending him gifts. The gift he sends was very large and a testimony to how much God had blessed Jacob in material possessions.
22 And he arose that night and took his two wives, his two female servants, and his eleven sons, and crossed over the ford of Jabbok. 23 He took them, sent them over the brook, and sent over what he had.
Jacob could not sleep despite praying. Like so many of us do, he prayed and took the burden right back. I am guilty of this, I pray and I know what is written yet I worry. Scriptures say “I have been young, and now am old; Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, Nor his descendants begging bread.” How many of us worry about our kids and their future? I know I am guilty. For I am the Lord your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you. Do you struggle with fear? If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. How many of us struggle with the guilt of past sin. So many of us cannot forgive ourselves for past wrong doings yet God promises us, he will remember them no more. As Peter says, Cast your burden on to Jesus, he cares for you. Once you cast it at his feet, leave it there and feel the peace of Christ. Don’t spend another sleepless night like Jacob worrying and in fear.
24 Then Jacob was left alone; and a Man wrestled with him until the breaking of day. 25 Now when He saw that He did not prevail against him, He touched the socket of his hip; and the socket of Jacob’s hip was out of joint as He wrestled with him. 26 And He said, “Let Me go, for the day breaks.” But he said, “I will not let You go unless You bless me!”
This portion of scripture is one of the most difficult to understand and explain in the Bible. Did he actually wrestle with a man or with an angel, or is the entire description simply an illustration of spiritually battle within Jacob’s heart? This is what Hosea has to say ” He took his brother by the heel in the womb, And in his strength he struggled with God.[a] 4 Yes, he struggled with the Angel and prevailed; He wept, and sought favor from Him.” I believe, he wrestled with an angel ( God-man, Jesus) as he later says, he had “seen God face to face.” It was imperative for Jacob to know and understand the divine plan of God. He must learn clearly the role he was to play in establishing the chosen nation and, that God was all sufficient. He must know his own weakness, but even more, know the power of God. This is a lesson all of us need to learn. As we feel more and more conflict within us, we need to cry out to God. Instead of focusing on immediate conflict, problem or issue at hand, our prayers should be about seeking the will of God for our life and accomplishment of his will. As Jacob struggled that night, God’s presence and purpose became more and more clear to him. Jacob felt that, if he ever let go, it would mean that God had left him, with prayer unanswered and so he clung to him desperately, begging all the while for the blessing. God in his grace allowed him to hang on, seeing that Jacob’s faith and understanding were growing as he clung to him. Let us be clear here about one thing, It was not that Jacob was stronger than God and he overpowered God but it does show that it is God’s wish that men persist in prayer and that He delights to yield to such prayers. The Angel imposed a physical injury to Jacob as a reminder of this night. This would inhibit Jacob from any undue assumption against God Since he would know that God had allowed him to prevail; But on the other hand, he would never forget the unique blessing. I like to draw your attention to a very important fact. Jacob began to pray that day and as he cried out to God for strength and deliverance, it turned into an actual physical battle. We have the same promises that Jacob had, we too have angels guarding us and protecting us and like Jacob, we tend to be fearful of our encounter with Esau’s of our life. Remember, whatever difficulty you are facing, your battle starts with prayer and you might have to go through a battle physically but if you cling to God despite what the circumstances are, no matter how weak you feel, no matter how much pain you are in like Jacob, Just cling to God and his promises and when the morning comes, you will be blessed. And when you come through victorious from your struggle, your walk with God will change. Jacob limped for rest of his life. But, he learned to lean on God. Every time he leaned on that walking stick, he was reminded of that night and the blessing. Sometimes we need to be broken before we can completely submit to the will of God.
27 So He said to him, “What is your name?” He said, “Jacob.”28 And He said, “Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel;[b] for you have struggled with God and with men, and have prevailed.”
Did God not know who he was fighting? Of course, he knew. If you recall, Isaac had asked him the same question when he brought the meal to him. Jacob lied to him. God was reminding him of his act of unfaithfulness. From the day Jacob was born, he tried to change his circumstances. He wanted to be firstborn. He wanted the blessing that comes along with being firstborn. He was trying to be someone else like so many of us do. But here he finally admits, who he is. I am Jacob, a con man, a conniver one who is lied to his father. God wanted to hear his confession and as soon as he does so, he changes his name from Jacob to Israel, which means governed by God. The name Israel is God’s testimony to the character and power of Jacob. How did Jacob prevail? he would not let go of God when he was in pain, broken and was losing strength. When we realize ‘I can’t go on another minute without God’ That’s when we prevail and take next step in our spiritual walk.
29 Then Jacob asked, saying, “Tell me Your name, I pray.” And He said, “Why is it that you ask about My name?” And He blessed him there.
Jacob felt he must ask Angel’s name. He had seen and heard God in dreams and visions, but here was an actual person with whom he had been struggling. Was this actually Jehovah? The Angel responded with a rhetorical question. “why do you ask my name”? You know who I AM. Jacob, Unlike you my name does not change. For I am the same yesterday, today and forever ( Hebrews 13:8). Jacob already knew who it was.
30 So Jacob called the name of the place Peniel:[c] “For I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.” 31 Just as he crossed over Penuel[d] the sun rose on him, and he limped on his hip. 32 Therefore to this day the children of Israel do not eat the muscle that shrank, which is on the hip socket, because He touched the socket of Jacob’s hip in the muscle that shrank.
When the Lord had departed, and the sun had risen, Jacob was walking with limp. This was no mere dream he had experienced, but an actual encounter with God. Jacob named the place “Peniel”, meaning “The face of God” and it continued to be known by that name until at least the days of divided kingdom ( 1 king 12:25). Because of this incidence, the children of Israel had adopted a practice of not eating that particular muscle when eating meat. God did not command such practice. But, it did indicate the importance of this event in minds of nation of Israel. Jacob’s descendants honor the fact that he was a broken man. He limped through life but he learned to lean on God. Oh By no means he was perfect after this encounter, he will mess up again and backslid in his walk but his walk had changed. In chapter 28 he was born again, and here we see he was sanctified. Are you like Jacob of chapter 28? you have accepted Christ but the walk is not matching the decision? As we learned in the previous chapter, Jacob still lets his flesh decide who he was going to marry and lived with consequences for next 20 year. Are you making the same mistake? Let us learn from the life of Jacob. We are all running the same race. We are all walking in the same direction. Some of us might be ahead in our walk and some walking slowly behind but the goal is not to finish in record time, our goal is to reach the finish line. As the lyrics of the hymn says it so appropriately, “ The world behind me, the cross before be …no turning back”. Let us be gracious to each other in our walk. It took Jacob 20 years to be broken. As we take our journey of sanctification, let’s encourage each other, let’s lift each other up, especially those who might be backsliding and those who are weak. As we walk by faith, leaning on God, being sanctified each day, we will reach the finish line and how wonderful it will be to hear from our master “well done good and faithful servant…enter into the joy of the Lord. Amen.
only savior jesus 