Sometimes when we get together with others and they tell us of some unusual thing that has happened to them, we feel almost compelled to share some unusual thing that has happened to us.
Illus: For example, little Johnny was talking to a couple of boys in the school yard. Each was bragging about how great their fathers are and who was the fastest.
• The first one said: "Well, my father runs the fastest. He can fire an arrow, and start to run, and he gets there before the arrow arrives!"
• The second one said: "Ha! You think that's fast! My father is a hunter. He can shoot his gun and be there before the bullet arrives!"
• Little Johnny listened to the other two boys and shook his head. He then said, "You two know nothing about fast. My father works for the government. He stops working at 4:30... but he arrives home at 3:45!"
However, if we had been with Jacob it would have been hard to top what happened to him.
WHAT HAPPENED TO HIM? It happened during a FAMILY FEUD.
Illus: This family feud began even before Jacob’s birth. The Scripture tells us in Genesis 25:22, that during Rebekah’s pregnancy, "... the children struggled together within her...".
At birth, Esau was born first, but Jacob wasn’t far behind! The struggle in the womb had started and would continue through their lives.
WHAT CAUSED THIS PROBLEM? Jacob, through deception, tricked his elderly father into thinking he was the eldest brother Esau, and stole his birthright.
Jacob became a deceiver, and it was probably because of his deceiving mother.
• She seem to favor Jacob
• Isaac seem to favor Esau
Since Esau was the eldest brother, he was the rightful heir to his father’s wealth. But she wanted Jacob to receive it, and she came up with an evil scheme to deceive Isaac so that Jacob could get the inheritance.
Rebekah was a deceptive mother, and she passed her deceptive ways down to her son.
SHE AND JACOB PULLED IT OFF! But you can imagine how Esau must have felt toward his brother who had stolen his birth right? He was not a happy camper.
Illus: This reminds me of a recently divorced woman that was walking along the beach contemplating how badly treated she had been over the divorced settlement, when she saw a magic lamp wash up on shore. She rubbed the lamp, and out popped a genie!! The genie sensed her anger and allowed her to vent her troubles to him. As a consolation, the genie informed her that he would give her three wishes. But he cautioned her that because he did not believe in divorce, he would give her ex-husband ten times the amount of whatever she wished for. The woman is steaming mad, thinking that this is hardly fair, but she makes her first wish.
• The first wish was for a billion dollars. The genie granted her wish and she found herself sitting on a pile of one billion one-dollar bills. The genie then reminded her that her husband was now the surprised recipient of ten billion dollars.
• The woman could barely contain her anger when she made her second wish. The second wish was for a beautiful mansion on the shore of her own private beach. In an instant it was granted, exactly as she had imagined her dream home, in every tiny detail. But the genie reminded her again that her ex-husband now owned ten of what she had wished for, and pointed out across the bay to a small development of ten such mansions. Upon seeing this, the woman took her time to consider her final wish.
• Just as the genie was about to give up on her, the woman said she had made up her mind. But, before she could say anything, the genie again warned her that her ex-husband would get ten times whatever she wished for. "No problem," said the woman, smiling at last. "For my final wish ... I'd like to give birth to the meanest set of twins that have ever lived on this earth."
Esau was very upset for the way that Jacob had done him. After many years of unhappiness in the family, Jacob wants to make things right as best he can.
Look at Gen. 32:3 5, "And Jacob sent messengers before him to Esau his brother unto the land of Seir, the country of Edom. And he commanded them, saying, Thus shall ye speak unto my lord Esau; Thy servant Jacob saith thus, I have sojourned with (His uncle) Laban, and stayed there until now: And I have oxen, and asses, flocks, and menservants, and womenservants: and I have sent to tell my lord, that I may find grace in thy sight."
Jacob is willing to give a large portion of his wealth to get this family feud resolved! Family problems are the worst kind of problems you can have.
Illus: Two men met at a bus stop and struck up a conversation. One of them kept complaining of family problems. Finally, the other man said: "You think you have family problems? Listen to my situation.”
• “A few years ago I met a young widow with a grown-up daughter and we got married.”
• "Later my father married my step daughter. That made my stepdaughter my stepmother and my father became my stepson.”
• “Also, my wife became the mother in-law of her father-in-law.”
• “Then the daughter of my wife, my stepmother, had a son. This boy was my half-brother because he was my father's son, but he was also the son of my wife's daughter which made him my wife's grand-son. That made me the grandfather of my half-brother.”
• "This was nothing until my wife and I had a son. Now the half-sister of my son, my stepmother, is also the grand-mother. This makes my father the brother-in-law of my child, whose stepsister is my father's wife, I'm my stepmother's brother-in-law, my wife is her own child's aunt, my son is my father's nephew and I'm My own grandfather!”
“And you think you have family problems!"
Jacob had some family problems that were just about as bad! But what is interesting about this story is how this man that had lived his life by “hook and crook” to have things HIS WAY, finally got to the place he wanted to do it GOD’S WAY!
God wanted to teach him to learn to LEAN ON HIM. This is the very thing that God wants to teach all of us.
Let’s look at what it took in his life to reach this level, so that we might know what we must do. First, let’s look at-
I. HIS SOLITUDE
Genesis 32:24a, “And Jacob was left alone...” Being alone sometimes is the best thing in the world for us.
When we are with people we have to think about something to talk to them about, and most of the time we can find a lot to talk about.
Illus: This reminds me of the minister who just had all of his remaining teeth pulled and new dentures put in.
• The first Sunday, he only preached 10 minutes
• The second Sunday, he preached only 20 minutes
• On the third Sunday, he preached 1 hour and 25 minutes
When asked about this by some of the congregation, he responded this way.
• “The first Sunday, my gums were so sore it hurt to talk.”
• “The second Sunday, my dentures were hurting a lot.”
• “The third Sunday, I accidentally grabbed my wife's dentures... and I couldn't stop talking!”
Sometimes the best thing can happen is for us to be alone, and we can keep out mouth shut and let God talk to us.
There are some folks today who would not have the problems they are having, if they had a good “quiet time” with the Lord each day.
Jacob could really see himself as God saw him, when he was left alone.
• You see the problem is, when we are with family and friends and they are telling us how nice we look, and how much they like us, it is easy for us to ASSUME God feels the same way.
• But the problem is that our family and friends will tell us what we WANT TO HEAR, but when we get alone with God the Father behind closed doors, He will tell us what we are really like.
When we are alone with God the TRUTH COMES OUT!
Illus: A very elderly couple was having an elegant dinner to celebrate their 75th wedding anniversary. The old man leaned forward and said softly to his wife:
"Dear, there is something that I must ask you. It has always bothered me that our tenth child never quite looked like the rest of our children. Now I want to assure you that these 75 years have been the most wonderful experience I could have ever hoped for, and your answer cannot take that all that away. But,.. I must know, did he have a different father?"
The wife dropped her head, unable to look her husband in the eye, she paused for moment and then confessed. "Yes. Yes he did."
The old man was very shaken, the reality of what his wife was admitting hit him harder than he had expected.
With a tear in his eye he asked "Who?.. Who was he? Who was the father?"
Again the old woman dropped her head, saying nothing at first as she tried to muster the courage to tell the truth to her husband. Then, finally, she said "You are the father of our tenth child".
Many times when God shows us what we really are, it is PAINFUL! But that only happens when we are alone with God.
In this time of SOLITUDE, he sent his family away according to verse 22-23. And now the Bible says, "And Jacob was left alone…." Now he waits, all alone under the stars. No one is there except Jacob and God.
All of his trickery and shenanigans have come to an end. He is out of tricks, and His brother Esau is on the way to deal with him.
It is a smart man or woman who, when they reach their end, realize God is the only one can help them.
So what does he do in this time of SOLITUDE in his life? He cried out for God to help him! God sent a man unto him.
Look at Gen. 32:24, “... and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day."
Here at Bethel, Jacob is desperate. The man that God sent grabbed him and would not let go.
WHO IS THIS MAN? He was a very special angel from God sent to Jacob. Most likely it was the PRE-INCARNATE SON OF GOD.
HOW DO WE KNOW THAT? Look at verse 30, we read, “And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.”
We have looked at THE SOLITUDE, but now let’s look at-
II. HIS SURVIVAL
Jacob is a man with some serious problems, and he has run out of tricks and does not know what to do. He is thoroughly confused at this stage in his life.
Illus: He reminds me of some things you find on some T-shirts that we see: For example:
• I'm desperately trying to figure out why Kamikaze pilots wore helmets.
• Do illiterate people get the full effect of alphabet soup?
• Ever notice when you blow in a dog's face he gets mad at you, but when you take him in a car he sticks his head out the window? (Has to be the bad breathe!)
• Ever notice that anyone going slower than you is an idiot, but anyone going faster is a maniac?
• I have six locks on my door, all in a row. When I go out, I lock every other one. I figure no matter how long somebody stands there picking the locks, they are always locking three of them.
• One out of every three Americans is suffering from some form of mental illness. Think of two of your best friends. If they are OK, then it must be you.
• They show you how detergents take out bloodstains. I think if you've got a T-shirt with bloodstains all over it, maybe your laundry isn't your biggest problem.
When we are alone with God, He can show us our BIGGEST PROBLEMS. But just knowing you have a problem isn’t enough. Many Christians know they have a problem, but they can not get any help from the Lord because they do not want any help. They are content the way things are.
Illus: The story goes that three guys were fishing in a lake one day, when Jesus walked across the water and joined them in the boat.
• When the three astonished men had settled down enough to speak, the first guy asked humbly, "Jesus, I've suffered from back pain ever since I was in a war. Could you help me?" Jesus said, "Of course, my son," And, when he touched the man's back he felt relief for the first time in years.
• The second guy who wore very thick glasses and had a hard time reading and driving , asked if Jesus could do anything about his poor eyesight. Jesus smiled, removed the man's glasses and tossed them into the lake. When they hit the water, the man's eyes cleared and he could see everything distinctly.
• When Jesus turned to the third guy, the guy put his hands out defensively. "Don't touch me!" he cried. "I'm receiving a disability pension."
Submitted by: Gary Reinhardt
There are folks today that come to church every time the doors are open, but they never get any help from the Lord because He knows they really do not want any help. They are content living their life by every “Hook and Crook” they can come up with to have things their way. God has tried to help them, but they do not want his help.
Illus: A religious man is on top of a roof during a great flood.
• A man comes by in a boat and says "get in, get in!" The religious man replies, "No I have faith in God, he will grant me a miracle."
• Later the water is up to his waist, and another boat comes by and the guy tells him to get in. He responds that he has faith in god and god will give him a miracle.
• With the water about chest deep, another boat comes to rescue him, but he turns down the offer again because "God will grant him a miracle."
• With the water up to his chin, a helicopter throws down a ladder and they tell him to climb up. Mumbling with the water in his mouth, he again turns down the request for help.
He arrives at the gates of heaven with broken faith, and says to Peter, “I thought God would grand me a miracle and I have been let down." St. Peter chuckles and responds, "I don't know what you're complaining about, we sent you three boats and a helicopter, and every time you refused our help!"
Jacob had run out of tricks. He was desperate, and now he was willing to have God help him.
Look again at Gen. 32:24, “... and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day."
This was a long wrestling match. The Lord appeared unto Jacob, and in his desperation he knew that his brother Esau and 400 men were on their way to take care of him. HE WAS DESPERATE! This was no FAKE WRESTLING MATCH, this was the REAL THING!
As the dawn began to break, this heavenly stranger wanted to leave, but Jacob would not let him go.
The stranger touched Jacob's leg and put it out of joint. It sounds like a dislocated hip, which is quite painful, but it must have been more that just that because it became a permanent injury.
Gen. 32:25 "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."
Jacob must have been in great pain from this, but he was determined not let this angelic visitor go until he blessed him.
We need to learn the lesson of Jacob. We need to learn that we can no longer put our trust in our abilities, strength, tricks, but that self must die if we are going to SURVIVE SPIRITUALLY!
We have looked at HIS SOLITUDE and HIS SURVIVAL, but also let’s look at -
III. HIS SUPPLICATION
Gen. 32:26, "And he said, Let me go, for the day breaketh. And he said, I will not let thee go, EXCEPT THOU BLESS ME."
Jacob, despite the angel of the LORD’S pleadings, would not let him go. HE WANTED A BLESSING.
WHAT WAS THE BLESSING HE WANTED SO DESPERATELY? As far as we can tell, it involved two things:
1. Certainly he wanted to be saved and delivered from Esau's threat to kill him.
2. But also he was returning to the promised land that God might bless him there.
Look at Gen. 32:9, “And Jacob said, O God of my father Abraham, and God of my father Isaac, the LORD which saidst unto me, RETURN UNTO THY COUNTRY, AND TO THY KINDRED, AND I WILL DEAL WELL WITH THEE:”
He reminds the Lord that the reason he is returning, is because God had told him to return and that He would “DEAL WELL” with him.
He once using deception wanted his earthly Father to bless him, but now through HUMILITY he wants his Heavenly Father to help him. He said in desperation, “I WILL NOT LET YOU GO UNTIL YOU BLESS ME!”
Oh how God would bless his people today if they were sincere enough to call upon Him for His blessing. He would bless them to the point that you would not recognize them.
Illus: This reminds me of a lady that had a dream that she stood before St. Peter. She asked St. Peter how much longer she had to live on earth. He told her:
• 4 years
• 3 months
• 2 days
• 5 seconds
When she woke up from the dream, she was so excited that she had over four years to live, that she went to a plastic surgeon and had him to completely rebuild her from the top of head to her feet. When he got through, she walked out of the hospital and an ambulance ran into her and killed her. She stood before St. Peter again. She said, “You told me I had:
• 4 years
• 3 months
• 2 days
• 5 seconds”
“Why did you let that ambulance run over me”? St. Peter said, “I didn’t recognize you!”
If people today would obey God, He would bless them to the point that you would not recognize them. Oh, what great things could be accomplished through God's people if they would be more persistent in praying for God’s blessing!
Conclusion:
We have looked at:
I. HIS SOLITUDE
II. HIS SURVIVAL
III. HIS SUPPLICATION
