JABBOK A PLACE OF TOTAL SURRENDER
GENESIS 32:22 30
Last night I was sitting on my porch, on my new porch swing, and I was watching several birds sitting on the wire that carries the electrical power to my house. They were perched there without a care in the world.
But I knew that if I would reach up and touch that wire, death would be swift as a heart beat. The secret is that, when they touch that power line, they touch nothing else, and that's what keeps them safe.
My danger would be that, while touching the wire, I would also be touching the earth through the pole, and the current would turn my body into a channel for escape. "Post Toastie"
There is a great spiritual lesson in this because God wants us to seek our safety in complete surrender to His power and love. It is when we reach one hand to Him, while we keep holding on to the things of the world with the other, that we are in danger.
This morning I want to talk about Jabbok! It may not have meant anything to you before now, but after you hear this message, it should be one of the most important words in your spiritual vocabulary.
Jabbok is the place where Jacob wrestled with the Lord. It is where he made his total surrender to God. It is where he got his new character, and a new name Israel. It is the place where he won his greatest victory.
READ GENESIS 32:22 30
Jabbok means "a place of passing over." It also stands for struggle; to empty and pour out. What a glorious truth is revealed in this place Jabbok.
It is a place that has everything to do with today. It is the place where God's people discover the secret of power over every "besetting" sin. It represents a life and death crisis...one that leads to absolute surrender.
There will never be a glorious victory over sin and self until you go to Jabbok. There comes a time when we must "have it out" with God. We must face ourselves and be emptied of all evil desires and selfish ambitions.
In the past believers have been taught that there are two great crossings in the life of a Christian the Red Sea and the Jordan. The Red Sea represents coming out of the world. It symbolizes getting saved.
A lot of God's people come out of Egypt, but they never get to the promised land. They get stuck in the wilderness of unbelief, fear, and confusion. They leave the world but never enter the joy of the Lord.
Another crossing is required the Jordan. The Jordan represents a commitment to go on with the Lord. Baptism, Bible reading, Witnessing, a desire to grow in Christ. It is a passing over into a life of praise, where they are filled with the Holy Spirit.
Isn't that all there is? The children of Israel entered their promised land...they got their inheritance. But they never did enter into the rest that God wanted them to have. They still had sin in their hearts, and held on to secret lust and idolatry.
How tragic that the same is true today. Multitudes of Christians have never known the true rest of God. Their peace is disturbed by a troubled conscience.
In Hebrews we read where God said that Israel "could not enter in because of unbelief...there still remained a rest to the people of God. And it is just as true today...many are missing that peace and rest that God has desires and has provided for us.
For years I have struggled with the theology of victory over sin. I don't mean sinless perfection, but freedom from being a slave to sin..
I do believe that it is possible for a person to be saved, filled with the Spirit, and dedicated to the work of the Lord, and still be hooked by some secret sin, or some overwhelming lust (not all lust is sexual)
I've had the occasion to work with people who were struggling with drugs, alcohol, violence, gambling, illegitimate sex, and various other kinds of addictions and I needed answers...I needed a clear simple message on how to get and maintain victory over these things.
And now, it's no longer just the people on the streets that are facing these struggles, it's sweeping through the church like the plague. Is there no victory over all this runaway lust? Is there anything we can do?
There is a third crossing! Jabbok!
Jabbok was a tributary of the Jordan. It was a lonely place. !And our Jabbok must be faced alone„Ç. You can cross the Red Sea with a mighty host of the redeemed who leave Egypt. You can cross the Jordan with the victorious army of the Lord all around you.
But you will cross Jabbok alone! No counselors, no friends, no helpers. This is your private war...between you and the Lord alone. Vs. 24
Jabbok is where the Jacob in us is given it's final death blow. It is where God deals with us not only about our sin, but also about our very character.
Jacob was a troubled, desperate man. God had put his back against the wall. He was returning after many years to claim his inheritance. And Esau, the brother he had swindled the birthright from, was coming in his direction with an army of 400 men.
Jacob had matured in many ways. He was now a loving father. He was obedient to the Lord, following His command to return home. He loved truth. He was a humble praying man. Listen to verse 10 (READ)
But this humble, obedient, praying, God fearing, truth loving servant of God was still into appeasement. That means giving in to a dangerous power to avoid trouble. Peace at any cost...including compromise.
Instead of trusting God in his crisis, he worked angles. He tried to think his way through. He would bombard Esau with wave after wave of gifts...goats, sheep, camels, bulls, donkeys, and rams.
VS. 20 (READ)
Appeasement! This is what multitudes of Christians are into. They give in to a dangerous power because they're afraid that they are helpless.
You hear it all the time. "I just can't help it. I don't want to do it, I hate my sin, but in spite of all my efforts I give in and fail.
So over and over again we appease. We sin...and confess...weep and confess...and try to think our way out. Oh, the angles, schemes, justifications, excuses, and plans...all in vain.
Let me show you what must happen at Jabbok.
1. At Jabbok Religion gives way to Spirituality!
We can be very religious and not be at all spiritual. Jacob had a very religious experience at Bethel. On his way to find a wife among his own people he had an amazing religious experience.
READ 28:12
God appeared and made a covenant with him...it was a promise of material blessings...Vs 13 14
Jacob cried out...AWESOME...THE LORD IS IN THIS PLACE!
Jacob called the place Bethel, and then proceeded to make a deal with God. This blessing part sounded good.
READ 28:20 22
Does this have a familiar ring to it? Bless me, Lord! Prosper me in all my ways. Give me plenty to eat. Clothe me well. Take good care of me, THEN I'll serve you! THEN I'll pay my tithe. Give it to me so I can give it back to you.
Think of it. God is there...the heavens are open, angels appear, God speaks. What a supernatural, religious experience. And all Jacob can see out of it is a deal for land, food, clothes, prosperity, and success. It was strictly a religious experience.
Bethel is the popular religion of our day. Just like Jacob, we interpret God's promises in materialistic ways. In high sounding religious words we talk about the power of Christ's shed blood, but we so many times misinterpret what His sacrifice really accomplished.
All some can see is what they can get out of it. They are blind to the true meaning of Christ's victory on the cross...which is power over sin! The freedom to sacrifice, suffer, and willingly serve to advance His kingdom on earth.
Some may be very religious people. Like Jacob, they may have experienced great revelations, seen angels, and perhaps even heard from God. But at Bethel the flesh is still in control.
It is a place of religion, but not true spirituality. It is a partial revelation. It goes for all the blessings while ignoring the deep inner struggle. It is being in the presence of the Lord without dealing with the Jacob nature. That comes only at Jabbok.
2. Jabbok is a place of absolute surrender.
It is a place of total victory...but you are never ready for Jabbok until you are desperate. You have to come to the end of yourself. Your burden of sin must bring you to a life and death crisis.
Look at the crisis Jacob faced. On one side, Esau was closing in on him. On the other side stood the Lord Himself. He could go no further. It was the absolute end of the line.
For twenty years he had been able to bluff his way through. He had survived on clever cover ups. But now he was in a place where he couldn't go on...even one more day...as he had in the past.
Jacob was forced to reveal his true self before the awesome presence of the Lord...and see himself for what he really was. All night long the battle raged.
But this time Jacob meant business. He wanted to be free. He wanted to look the Lord and the world in the eye and know he was honest and holy. He wanted deliverance.
READ 32:27
Jacob knew what his name stood for: "heel grabber"! One who cheats his brother, himself, and tries to hide it from God's flaming eyes. What the Lord was saying to him was:
Look at yourself what you've become. No excuses now. For once in your life, face reality. Face the truth...be deadly honest, or there will be no victory.
And out it all comes...Oh, Lord. I'm a phony. I'm so religious outwardly, but inwardly I'm a cheat! I'm a grabber! I've played with fire too long! I've been excusing my actions, justifying my sins. Forgive me Lord.
There can be no victory without facing the final deadline at Jabbok. You must face the reality that you are not a special person, immune to exposure and judgment. You must face the fact that God, in His love, must give you a deadline...a last chance to obey completely.
Not that His grace is withdrawn, or His love and mercy limited. But there comes a time when God can no longer hold back the wages of your sin.
You must face the reality that you cannot go on living a lie. No matter how blessed you are, no matter what great things are accomplished in His name...God will not permit an open ended license to go on sinning. You must obey or be exposed, and begin to reap what you have sown.
At Jabbok, Christ delivers us from our provoking sins by changing our very character. READ vs 28
Prevailing power through a new character. Jacob knew it was in his power to obey, because the Lord accepted his commitment to surrender.
The Lord is not interested simply in us getting victory over certain sins. He wants us to change into new people with pure hearts. We need a character change.
It took only one desperate night of facing the truth. One night of struggle with the old nature. He had it out with the Lord and prevailed. The Lord saw his desperation and determination and touched him. He put his thigh out of joint.
One of the greatest miracles the Lord can perform in our behalf is to cripple all our human efforts and make us totally dependent upon Him.
We must always keep in mind that we need supernatural help to sustain this commitment. It starts at Jabbok but doesn't end there.
3. Jabbok is the place of an open heaven.
God reveals himself only to those who get rid of their dishonesty and deceit.
Look at the promise Jesus gave to Nathaniel, one of the twelve in
John 1:47 51: Jesus said to him, Nathaniel, there is no deceit or dishonesty in you. You are an open book...no hidden works of sin...nothing to hinder you in your life. You will be given an open heaven. You will see things few others see. A full revelation is yours, because you have no dishonesty in you.
The Lord desperately longs to open His heart to us and lead us into all truth. But our guile hinders us. That's why Jabbok is so necessary. It's a place to lay down all that remains to hinder our walk with God...so that the heavens will stay open to us.
Jacob renamed Jabbok "Peniel." Peniel means "the face of God" VS 30
Jacob is now a spiritual man. No more talk of material blessings land, food, clothes, success. He has seen God and has been touched. It is not cattle now, but Christ.
The heavens once again opened. The ladder reappeared with angels ascending and descending. But now, he understood the deepest meaning of that open heaven. It means access to the Father!
Jacob wasted over twenty years. He could have enjoyed years of an open heaven. He could have had unity with his brother and Laban. Some of us have also wasted many years, with the heavens sometimes like brass. Shut out of the revelation of Christ's fullness.
Is heaven open to you? Is the Lord revealing Himself to you in truth and holiness? If not, you may be shutting it all down by holding on to an "idol." Secret sin may be the cause of your spiritual dryness and blindness.
There can be no love and unity in the church until God's people live pure, obedient lives.
Finally, going to Jabbok is not optional. It is ordered of the Lord.
Yes, we are loved! But we are also going to be judged. The Bible says that judgment must begin in the house of the Lord. The whole church of Jesus Christ is being led to Jabbok. None of us shall escape this crisis.
What will we do when we're there?? What will you do?
