Mighty Is The God Of The One Who Struggles With God. Series

Mighty is the God of the one who struggles with God.

Last week we looked at Jacob and an encounter that he had with God where he wrestled all night, he received a blessing, a new name and an injured hip. He realised that he had been wrestling with God, had survived and as such named the place that this had occurred accordingly.

We noted that this encounter of Jacob’s with God was a turning point in his life. Here was a man of no small means, with eleven sons to his two wives and their maid servants, the third of the nations of Israel and Judah’s patriarchs who finally realised that he needed a relationship with his God, with the God of Abraham and Isaac, and could not just rely on the historical connection his father and grandfather had.

You will remember in chapter 32 that a good chunk of the chapter was dedicated to Jacob’s brother Esau, the one that Jacob had swindled out of his inheritance. The brother who was on his way to meet him with four hundred men.

So, Jacob, aka Israel the man, not the nation, after encountering God limps into his future. As we look at chapter 33, we see that he still is concerned about this meeting with Esau.

Jacob divided the children between Leah, Rachel and the two maid servants. He then put the maidservants, his concubines in front of the rest of the group and then Leah and her kids, then Rachael and Joseph in the rear.

It seems the ladies and their children would have had a good idea where they stood with their master, husband and father. Racheal and Joseph certainly have preference over the rest.

Jacob then approached Esau in a repentant, humble way. You could even say he was a bit of a groveller, bowing to the ground seven times as he approached Esau. Jacob had likely expected a bit of heavy negotiation with his brother to save his own neck. However, Esau was pleased to see Jacob, no daggers under his robes, he ran to embrace his twin, threw his arms around him and kissed him. He wept; Jacob wept. Esau weeping out of joy to see Jacob and I wonder in Jacob’s case because he realised that he didn’t get what he thought was coming to him, he had no injuries, no wounds, he was still alive.

Esau asked after Jacob’s company, Jacob’s reply “these are the children God has given your servant.” Always good to bring God into a tense situation. Then the respective concubines and wives came forth and were introduced and bowed down before Esau.

Esau then asks about all the animals that had been sent on in advance in the previous chapter we read about “two hundred female goats and twenty male goats, two hundred ewes and twenty rams, thirty female camels with their young, forty cows and ten bulls, and twenty female donkeys and ten male donkeys. “(Genesis 32:14-15).

Jacob’s reply was honest, the reason for sending the flocks was to find favor in Esau’s eyes. Jacob was a man who was living with guilt, he now had a personal conviction of his guilt. This seems to be a recent occurrence in his life. Maybe and I am only supposing that now Esau was no longer the brother who just enjoyed the outdoors and hunting as he did when he was a young man and he now a bit of power behind him. God, like he had blessed Jacob, had blessed Esau also, and he would go on to become his own nation, at least his descendants would. Here he was with 400 men, as I mentioned last week his own army. Any army runs on its supplies. Four-hundred men don’t travel any distance with a couple of sandwiches and a bottle of water. Esau was a powerful man.

Esau tells Jacob, “I already have plenty brother, you keep what you have.” Both men were what you could consider to be independently wealthy.

Jacob’s reply was along the lines of “If we are all good bro, keep the animals, please accept the gift. I see God in this situation, your being here is a divine moment, now that you and I are all good again. Please take the animals God has been so good to me, I have all I need also.” Because of his insistence Esau accepted the gift.

So, we have this moment of reconciliation between the two brothers. A moment that had been long coming, stressed over and prayed over by Jacob.

If we head back to the early days of history as described by the scriptures, we don’t have to look far back to Genesis chapter four see that the conflict between brothers does not always work out for the best, in Cain and Abel’ case because Abel’s offering to God was more acceptable than Cain’s, Cain killed Abel. There’s an interesting truth in this, that those who give a better offering of their lives to God than those they are with often end up persecuted for it, even killed for it. We wouldn’t have groups like Voice of the Martyrs or Barnabas Aid if it wasn’t the case. Also why is it that many who “have no belief” find it important to belittle those who do? Don’t wait on that question to long, it becomes a bit of a distraction, I think the answer is spiritual and rests with the fall of man and was part of the reason for Cain's killing of his brother, we all know that what we ought to do but don’t always do it. Unlike Cain, Esau would have in some respects have been justified in seeking some sought of vengeance on Jacob, however...God had other plans.