The Greatest Battle of All
By Pastor Jim May
Who is your worst enemy? Is it Satan? He is a powerful enemy to say the least. But he isn’t your worst enemy. You can overcome him easily through the blood of Jesus Christ and by calling upon the name of Jesus. The Bible says that Satan will run from you if you will only resist him through the blood. He is the enemy of your soul and the perpetrator of sin and temptation upon the whole human race. But he isn’t your worst enemy.
Is your worst enemy someone that you work with, or some member of your family that is convinced that you have wronged them somehow? People bear grudges and refuse to forgive for things that they often don’t even remember. The fact is that even if the wrongs have been done and people have been hurt, none of those things are worth losing your eternal soul over.
I have seen so many people who won’t forgive and forget past hurts. The Bible is very clear about Christians who will not forgive those who have wronged them. It plainly says in Mark 11:25-26, "And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses. But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses." What part of that scripture do we not understand? Can we expect to enter Heaven or be taken in the rapture with unforgiveness in our hearts? The answer is “NO”. Unforgiveness is a sin, a willful sin, that will definitely keep us out of Heaven.
Is the loss of an eternal soul worth not forgiving someone for any wrong, no matter how bad it hurt, or what it cost us in the past? Do not allow past hurts to bring eternal pain in the future. It’s not worth the price! Forgive and then forget as much as is within you. In time the pain will cease to exist and all will be forgotten.
But if we keep bringing the past up time and again, that isn’t forgiveness. Every time we rehash old hurts and things that have been done to us that we feel are wrong, then it’s just like those pains have been refreshed each time. That’s not forgiveness. That’s holding a grudge.
Forgiveness means that I will never hold what was done against anyone ever again, and if I must stand before God this day and testify against those who wronged me, that I will not hold them accountable before the Lord, but will confess that they are innocent of all charges that I may have had against them.
Your worst enemy is not another man, nor is your worst enemy an evil archangel named Lucifer. Your worst enemy is yourself!
In the 32nd chapter of the Book of Genesis we can see where that Jacob and Esau, the sons of Isaac, who was the son of Abraham, are finally coming to a showdown. It has been a long, painful journey for both of them.
If you recall, Jacob was a conniving individual with his heart set on obtaining the birthright from Isaac. He had put on a fur covering over his arms so that he would feel hairy and had tricked Isaac, who was blind into giving him the blessing of the firstborn, making him the first heir of the wealth and power of Isaac’s family. This was a blessing that only Esau was entitled to. But once the blessing was given, it could not be revoked. Of course this set Esau on a course of hatred and envy and threats were made.
It wasn’t all Jacob’s fault however. If you also recall, Esau didn’t think much of the birthright because he had sold it to Jacob already for a bowl of soup. His belly, and his hunger for the needs of the body of flesh were more important than the promises of God that would be received through the birthright.
There are two points to make right here that truly pertain to us. 1) There are still so many Christian who think so little of their birthright, as the Sons of God, that they are willing to sell their soul for the things that satisfy the flesh. Every day, people are dying and going into eternity without God, who once knew the Lord and had tasted of the Heavenly Bread. Their birthright to eternal life has been sold for a pittance.
History tells us that there have been some pretty good deals made in purchasing property down through the ages.
The Island of Manhattan, where most of New York City now sits, was purchased from the Indians for a few pieces of cheap jewelry worth only about $24.
The Louisiana Purchase, under President Thomas Jefferson, cost the United States $15 million but only $8.8 million was paid in cash. France owed us the other $6.2 million and would probably have never paid it back otherwise. That’s not a bad price for the area that covered all or part of at least 14 states from the Gulf of Mexico to the Canadian border.
But all of these “big deals” pale in comparison to the small price that a man sells his eternal soul for. Jesus knows that the price of a soul cannot be measured in things that are created. The price of a soul is more valuable than the wealth of the entire world. God sent his only Son to die, giving the best that Heaven has, for the price of just one soul. Yet we sell that birthright so cheaply!
2) The second point is that every argument it takes two people. If we would just learn to be humble enough to take the fault, even when it’s not our fault, there would be fewer arguments. Just remember this: “No one can hurt your feelings if you don’t let them.” We have to learn that people are people and sometimes people say things and do things on purpose to hurt you, but most of the time they don’t even know that they are doing it.
So now we come to story of Jacob, running from Esau, once again. In the 32nd Chapter of Genesis, Esau is still after Jacob. This family feud has been going on for years but now its coming to a head. Esau has finally caught up with his conniving brother and he is out for vengeance.
Jacob has used his inherited wealth and gained even more. He has two wives, two female house servants and 12 sons as well as a large number of servants that work with his animals. He owns herds of donkeys, cattle, camel and sheep, and he is traveling with all of this household, moving slowly through the country moving toward Esau’s army.
He sent messengers to deliver his offer of peace to his brother, but he wasn’t sure whether they would be accepted. When the news arrived that Esau was coming to meet him with 400 men, it surely didn’t seem that it would be a peaceful meeting.
Jacob decided to try to appease his brother’s wrath before they met so he divided his herds and sent several out ahead as peace offerings. Each time Esau met a herd he was told that it was a gift to him from Jacob who was following behind the herds. Much of the wealth of his inheritance was being given back to Esau as an offering of peace.
After the herds were dispatched at intervals along the road, Jacob then divided the rest of his household into two groups and then the groups went in different directions. His thoughts were that if Esau attacked and destroyed one group that the other would survive and thus his entire family would not be wiped out. But there was no guarantee that Esau would not hunt down and murder both groups.
After the family groups departed and the herds had left to meet Esau, Jacob was alone. He stood alone to face the onslaught of Esau. It was time to pay the piper for all the sneaking, conniving tricks that he had played through all the years. On this day, Jacob was resigned to meet his fate. He did not know whether he would live another day.
To make a point here, we must realize that when it comes to the Day of Reckoning, when we must stand to answer for what we have done in this life, we will stand alone.
The pastor, teacher, mom, dad, brother, sister, spouse or children won’t stand with you. It will be just you and God. One day soon, there will be a Judgment Day, when the Judge of the Universe will be seated on his Great White Throne, representing absolute righteousness, absolute power and absolute authority. John gave us a word-picture of what it will be like on that day.
Revelation 20:12-15, "And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire."
There will be no excuses accepted on that day. No matter what the reasons are, they won’t hold up in God’s court. He knows the very thoughts and intents of the heart, so even if what we think is a good excuse not to serve him now, it won’t mean anything then because God knows that your heart was never inclined to serve him, no matter what the excuse is.
Ignorance won’t be acceptable, for we have every opportunity to learn and know God’s Word.
Too busy won’t be acceptable, because we set our own priorities in life and that which we determine for ourselves is most important is what we spend our time doing, so it will only prove that serving God wasn’t a priority.
Too tired won’t be acceptable either, for if we would just learn to serve the Lord and wait upon him as we should, he has promised to give us the strength to run and not be weary, to walk and not faint.
No excuse will stand in that day, for God not only knows the heart, but he knows the mind as well. Those who stand before him at that judgment will stand speechless as the charges are read, the sentence is given and the execution is completed. There will be no sounds except for the voice of the Judge and the screams of tormented souls as they are cast into the flames forever.
What of earth is worth facing that judgment? How much is it worth to us to not have to go there but to stand before Jesus and hear him say, “Well done, thou good and faithful servant. Enter into the Joys of your Lord.”
And so, Jacob stands alone with God for the moment. Now the greatest battle of his life begins; not with Esau, but with his own will and the will of God.
Genesis 32:24-28, "And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day. And when he saw that he prevailed not against him, he touched the hollow of his thigh; and the hollow of Jacob’s thigh was out of joint, as he wrestled with him. And he said, Let me go, for the day breaketh. And he said, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me. And he said unto him, What is thy name? And he said, Jacob. And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed."
Jacob wasn’t wrestling with a ghost as some would say. He wasn’t wrestling with an imaginary being that was created in his own mind, as others say. This was a real person, visible, strong and able to fight hard. Some have said that it was actually the Archangel Michael that took on the form of a man who wrestled with Jacob all night long. But this was no mere angel for Jacob called him God, and no angel would have accepted that identity without rebuking Jacob. This was, no doubt, the very Son of God, Jesus Christ himself, in a pre-incarnate body who had come to confront Jacob and bring him into submission to the will of God. This type of appearance of Christ n the Old Testament , called a “Theophany”,occurs several times in Scripture.
In Genesis 16:7-13, He spoke with Hagar.
In Genesis 22:11-18, after the offering of Issac, He confirmed His covenant with Abraham.
In Judges 6:11-24, he is identified as Jehovah, and he is called the Angel of the Lord and accepts worship. No angel would accept worship from men.
In Genesis 18, three men appear to Abraham. One of them is Jehovah, Jesus in bodily form. The other two are called angels in verse 13.
In Joshua 5:13-15, a man meets Joshua near Jericho. The man identified Himself as "captain of the host of the LORD." He accepted Joshua’s worship, and told Joshua to remove his shoes because he was on holy ground, just as Moses had to do when the Angel of the LORD spoke to him from the burning bush in Exodus chapter 3. This proves that the “Captain” was God and leads us to the conclusion that this is another pre-incarnate appearance of Christ.
One other example of many more is when Abraham offered tithes and offerings to a priest called Melchizedek, who was the priest of Salem without father or mother and whose priesthood was without beginning or end. Only the pre-incarnate Christ could fill those words as eternal God.
So Jacob wrestled with the Lord all night long.
That’s a picture of the struggle that goes on in the heart of a man every day of his life, especially those who constantly fight against God and aren’t willing to totally surrender their lives to him. The battle lasts a lifetime in some cases, and who can deny that the struggle seems to take place like a wrestling match that lasts all through the long night of darkness that dwells in the heart of a sinful man?
The wrestling match went on until the break of day. I believe that’s symbolic too, for the moment when we finally come to the end of our rope and surrender fully to God’s will, is the very moment that the light of God dawns in our soul like never before. The “Day Star” arises in our hearts as Jesus finally takes the place of preeminence in our hearts and truly becomes the Lord of our lives.
Why did Jesus allow this struggle to last all night? Could he not have overcome Jacob instantly? The Lord allowed this struggle to continue on for a long time for two reasons: 1) to give Jacob the time to finally give up the fight and fully surrender of his own will, and 2) to help strengthen Jacob’s faith for the days to come.
God doesn’t always zap you into submission, but it is a daily struggle until we finally give in. But like he did to Jacob, God has ways of getting our attention and forcing us to make a final choice to surrender or live on in rebellion.
The Lord knocked Jacob’s thigh bone out of joint, incapacitating him, forcing him to realize that the wrestling match must come to an end. It was time to move on.
God knows our weaknesses, and he knows our strengths. He knew that Jacob’s weakness was in his commitment to integrity, but that he relied on his own strength and cunning to overcome. This night Jacob had to learn that his integrity was important and that he could not depend upon his own strength. His help had to come from the Lord and that’s why Jacob asked for the Lord to bless him. He finally realized that his help only comes from God. God is all sufficient for whatever Jacob needed and he is the same for you and I.
God blessed Jacob and changed his name to Israel which meant, “A Prince with God”.
Is that not the same thing that Jesus does for us today? When we finally submit our will to his will then we become the heirs and joint-heirs with Christ. We are adopted into the family of God as his own dear children. We become children of the King of Kings. In other words we become princes and princesses with God, just as Jacob did, and the covenant of God then passes on to us.
A healing took place that day between Jacob and Esau and they went their separate ways as brothers once again, to live in peace.
As we come to the close I simply want to ask, “Have you made peace with God? Have you faced the long night of struggling with God, and have you finally come to realize that it’s a fight you can’t win? God wants us to be totally surrendered people in His Kingdom. We cannot be a prince with God until we allow God to have his way in us.
The greatest battle of all is not with the devil or other men, but with the Lord himself, trying to get us to surrender our will to his will. If you win that battle, you lose everything, but if you lose that battle and fully surrender to God, then you win everything.
