Psalm 46:1-11:
“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. There is a river, the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God, the holy place of the tabernacles of the most High. God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved: God shall help her and that right early. The heathen raged, the kingdoms were moved: he uttered his voice, the earth melted. The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Come; behold the works of the LORD, what desolations He hath made in the earth. He maketh wars to cease unto the end of the earth; He breaketh the bow, and cutteth the spear in sunder; he burneth the chariot in the fire. Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen; I will be exalted in the earth. The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah.
God is described by many names in the Scriptures. For example, He is called:
1. Jehovah Shamah meaning ‘I am there’. Jesus says “Lo, I am with you always, even unto the ends of the earth” He also says:
“Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? Yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee”. (Isaiah 49:15)
In summary, we are the ones that forsake God; He does not forsake us.
2. Jehovah Shalom; meaning:-
“Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.” (Isaiah 26:3)
There was a brother who liked this verse and recited it every day and aloud. He had a friend who did not want to accept Christ as Saviour. One day, the unbelieving friend asked him to stop disturbing him with his recitation. The brother told him that any time he was in trouble; he should remember the God of peace. One day, the unbelieving friend, was in his pharmacy when a little girl came to buy medicine for her mother. The man, who was fast asleep, woke up to attend to the girl. He gave her the first bottle in sight and the girl ran home. Suddenly, the man realised that he had sold out poison to the girl. He did not know her and so could not know where she could have gone. It dawned on him that he was about to kill a woman and if that happened, he would be in trouble. His license would be withdrawn and would probably be jailed. Suddenly, he remembered his friend who had told him to call on the God of peace, whenever he was in trouble. For the first time in his life, he prayed to God. At that very moment, he saw the girl coming back crying. She said she fell as she was running with the bottle and the bottle got broken. The man gave a sigh of relief and that was how he surrendered his life to the Lord Jesus Christ.
3. Jehovah Jireh
It means the Lord will provide.
Philippians 419:
“But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus”.
4. Jehovah Nissi
The Lord our victor
1 John 4:4
“Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world”.
5. Jehovah Rapha
The Lord that healeth thee.
Isaiah 53:5
“But he was wounded for our transgressions; he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed”.
Most of these names are a description of God’s character. They sound as if they are the observation of someone looking at Him and describing Him.
Elijah addressed Him as the God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel.
1 Kings 18:36-38:
“And it came to pass at the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that Elijah the prophet came near, and said, LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and of Israel, let it be known this day that thou art God in Israel, and that I am thy servant, and that I have done all these things at thy word. Hear me, O LORD, hear me, that this people may know that thou art the LORD God, and that thou hast turned their heart back again. Then the fire of the LORD fell, and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench”.
After this short introduction, fire fell. Many people do not know why Elijah addressed God that way.
If you call Him this way, He will answer by fire.
Now take this prayer points, with holy violence before you go on before you go on.
- Let the God of Elijah destroy all my spiritual Baals in the Name of Jesus
- Let every challenge issued against me by satanic prophets, fall down to the ground and die.
What does God call Himself?
1. Exodus 3:14:
“And God said unto Moses “I AM THAT I AM” and He said “Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you”.
2. Revelation 18:
“I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty”.
3. Revelation 22:13:
“I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last”.
Isaiah 49:25-26:
“But thus saith the LORD, Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away, and the prey of the terrible shall be delivered: for I will contend with him that contendeth with thee, and I will save thy children. And I will feed them that oppress thee with their own flesh; and they shall be drunk with their own blood, as with sweet wine: and all flesh shall know that I the LORD am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob”.
When you are calling on God; you have to know who He is.
When the prophets of Baal had finished shouting to call their god, Elijah now introduced his own God.
1 Corinthians 8:5-6:
“For though there be that are called gods, whether in heaven or in earth, (as there be gods many, and lords many,) but to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in Him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by Him”.
Sometimes, when some people get attacked in their dreams, they call on God and nothing happens. It is because they have not identified themselves with Him. There is only one Lord, Jesus Christ and if there is anything through which you are calling God, which is different from the Lord Jesus Christ, then you are not serving the Living God. There is nothing like Jesus of Oyingbo or Jesus of Agege. If God should declare Himself as the God of Jacob, it means there is hope for you and me.
Understanding God as the God of Jacob
The man Jacob.
He is an interesting character in the Bible. He was born of a woman who had been barren for many years; so, he came as an answer to prayer. Right from the womb, he was a struggler. He was a twin and he held on to the heel of his brother that came out before him. As he grew older, he became more fraudulent. He fraudulently collected his brother, Esau’s birthright. He took advantage of the fact that the brother too liked food. As if that was not enough, he connived with his mother, to fraudulently collect his brother’s blessings from their father. As from that day, the two brothers became enemies. Esau sought to kill him and so, Jacob ran away, knowing that his brother being a hunter could get him even at a distance. For many years, he was in a foreign land where he got married and prospered. Jacob worked hard for seven years, in order to get the woman that he loved. He did not know that he was dealing with a father-in-law that was more fraudulent than he. He got married and on the night of the wedding it was the elder sister of the woman that he wanted, that was given to him. He did not realise it until the following morning. It was then that his father-in-law told him that he could not marry the younger before the elder. He was still interested in the younger; so he served their father for seven years again, in order to marry her. When he was about to leave, he fraudulently got more flock from his master, who was also his father-in-law.
After many years, he summed up courage to face his brother and make things right with him. For fear of being turned down or aggressed, he sent his family ahead of him. He was left alone in the wilderness and he slept off. In his dream, he saw angels ascending and descending a ladder and he concluded that the Lord was in that place. He called the place ‘Peniel’.
Genesis 32:22-32:
“And he rose up that night, and took his two wives and his two women servants, and his eleven sons, and passed over the ford Jabbok. And he took them, and sent them over the brook, and sent over that he had. 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”. And Jacob asked him, and said “Tell me, I pray thee, thy name”. And he said: “Wherefore is it that thou dost ask after my name?” And he blessed him there. And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: for I have seen God face to face and my life is preserved. And as he passed over Penuel the sun rose upon him, and he halted upon his thigh. Therefore the children of Israel eat not of the sinew which shrank, which is upon the hollow of the thigh, unto this day: because he touched the hollow of Jacob’s thigh in the sinew that shrank”.
Lessons to learn from the experience of Jacob:
1. He laid his head on a stone to sleep; it was not a comfortable pillow. Many Christians today are seeking ease. For you to receive the revelation of heaven, you have to place your head upon the Rock.
2. The life of Jacob was full of ups and downs until one day, when he had a divine encounter. Until you come in contact with the Lord, there are some things that will not change. When you experience a divine visitation, your life undergoes a dramatic incision. By the time the angel finished dealing with Jacob, he became a broken man. All the desire to cheat and deceive was gone.
3. He had to struggle with the angel of God, to be blessed. The Christian life is a battle and we have to fight the devil to repossess our possessions.
4. He got his thigh broken. God Himself puts a finger on our pressure points; those areas that we are trying to cover up. At such times, when a limb is broken, you will have no choice than to lean on the Lord, for sustenance.
5. He got his name changed. The name of Jacob constituted a great problem to his life; many Christians today are suffering under the yoke of the names that they were given by their parents. Some names depict dedication to idols and automatically, a demon is assigned to the person to take charge of his or her life. God pointed straight at that problem by changing his name to Israel.
6. Even though Jacob settled with his brother, the effect of his past life was felt on him. His daughter Dana was sexually assaulted’ his wife Rachel died, his son committed incest, at a point in time, all his children ganged up to tell him a lie at his old age, that Joseph their brother was dead.
“The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge”.
Why is God called the God of Jacob and not of Esau? At least, they came out of the same womb.
God as the God of Jacob:
1. He is the one who answers when called upon. He takes all those who come to Him in repentance and faith
John 6:37
“All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out”
No matter how horrible your sins are, no matter how imperfect you have been in the past, the God of Jacob is ready to accept you, if you come to Him in repentance and you have faith in Him. The God of Jacob is not like an orderly policeman, who is seeking to arrest offenders. He saw Jacob in his imperfections and He took him as he was. God wants you to come the way that you are. He will not cast you out, provided you have faith in Him. That is why I said earlier on, that if God is the God of Jacob, then, there is hope for everyone.
2 He shows divine, life-changing revelations, if you get close to Him. Jacob was left alone with God, before he saw the vision of heaven.
3. The way of the transgressor is hard. Every transgressor will receive a punishment; he will vomit whatever he has swallowed.
Proverbs 1121:
“Though hand join in hand, the wicked shall not be unpunished: but the seed of the righteous shall be delivered”.
4. The God of Jacob blesses abundantly. He is not a God that is poor.
Take this prayer point:
- God of Jacob, fight my battles for me today, in the Name of Jesus.
5. He changes evil names to good ones.
6. He grants miracles by violence.
7. He welcomes wrestlers and strugglers. There is a saying that the song: “Pass me not, O gentle Saviour”, is not to be sung whilst kneeling and closing your eyes. Blind Barthemeus did not take it easy at all. He cried out until he drew the attention of Jesus to himself. Jacob was not strong enough to have held back the angel; it was his aggressive prayers that arrested the angel.
Hosea 12:4:
“Yea, he had power over the angel, and prevailed: he wept, and made supplication unto him: he found him in Bethel, and there he spake with us”.
Have you ever seen an angel that could not really break away from a human being? If he wanted, the angel would have over-powered Jacob. That is why we have this account of the incidence in this verse in Hosea. I am certain that the angel too would have been wishing that he did not give up easily. The God of Jacob will grant miracles by violence. In just one night, power changed hands in the life of Jacob. He became really violent and God changed his name. Jacob was not ready to give up. I hope you are ready to get violent and pray violently today.
Many years ago, I read a story about a battle scheduled to take place between the Romans and the British. The British had planned to invade the Romans right from the sea shores, before they had time to work out their strategies. The Romans too had their own plan, which gave them an upper hand. As soon as they disembarked from the ship that transported them to Britain, they set the ship on fire. It meant there was no room for turning back; it meant ‘Onward ever, backward never’. This shocked and amazed the British soldiers and it made them to know that they meant business. This strategy gave the Romans victory over them.
When I was a small boy in the Primary School, the teacher used to give the cane to those who answered questions correctly, to beat those who got them wrong. I used to get the answers correctly so I always had to beat the others. If anyone was beating and was gentle about it, the teacher would give the person a bitter sample. I used to suffer for it because, after school hours, the pupils that received strokes of the cane from me, would gang up against me and beat me up. I then decided to stop answering questions in the class; but I discovered that the teacher would beat everybody and when it was my turn, he would give me more strokes of the cane, saying that I was supposed to know better. I had to start answering questions correctly, because it was safer for me, but I mapped out a strategy of attack on my oppressors. I got a hot balm in a small tin and when they attacked me again, I applied the balm on my palm and rubbed it on their eyes, one by one. As from that day, they stopped beating me up, because they knew that I had a dangerous weapon in my hand.
Beloved, let this be clear to you: the devil has no mercy and does not understand any other language than violence.
Matthew 11:12
“And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force”.
Here, Jesus is telling us that we should fight for the kingdom; that we should not sit and grumble. The word ‘violence’ is mentioned twice in that verse. Jacob was violent and he got God’s blessing. By the time his name became Israel, he had changed and that is why God is not being referred to as the God of Israel, but of Jacob: - he was violent and he took his possession by force. Today beloved, I want you to examine you life. See what you have and what you are supposed to have. Get violent and divinely dissatisfied.
One day, some Christians were at a meeting and some masqueraders were parading and threatening the Christians. One of the Reverend gentlemen said that they should just leave them to do what they wanted to do, so that there would be no trouble. One violent Christian said they were not going to allow them to carry out any ritual there. The brother prayed and called on the God of Jacob; he rain the Fire of the Holy Ghost upon the environment. Suddenly, the demons in the masquerades started to shout, that there was fire all over the place that they should leave immediately. The priest who was to carry out the sacrifice, shouted, saying that the sacrifice was not getting through; that the demons were complaining. He acknowledged the fact that the Christians had a power that was more powerful than his. He surrendered his life to the Lord Jesus Christ. This happened because some people got violent against the devil.
Abraham was a serious wrestler; he argued and pleaded on behalf of Sodom and Gomorrah; so that God would not destroy them. Moses too pleaded on behalf of the Israelites and it got to a stage where God told him not to make mention of the matter again. Today, I want you to call on the God of Jacob; call Him the way Jacob did; do not leave room for any alternative or negative response; do not let go on God, except He blesses you. That night, the strong man in charge of Jacob’s case was paralysed. Make sure that you do not allow the angel of your blessing to pass you by. Pray with all the strength that you have. Pray with holy aggression.
If hitherto, you have not surrendered your life to the Lord Jesus Christ, you cannot lay claims to the God of Jacob. You have got to have a personal encounter with the Lord; you must be born again. All you need do is acknowledge the fact that you are a sinner, and that you cannot approach God in your sinful state. Confess your sins to Him and ask Him to forgive you and cleanse you from all unrighteousness. Name them one by one; renounce and forsake them and make up your mind that you will never go back to them any more. Renounce the world and the devil. Invite the Lord Jesus into your life; ask Him to become your personal Lord and Saviour claim the redemptive power in the Blood of Jesus that was shed on the cross at Calvary, for the remission of our sins. Personalise it and ask Him to take control of your life and all that concerns you.
I congratulate you for this decision that you have just taken. I pray that it shall be permanent in your life, in the Name of Jesus. I pray that the Lord will uphold you with His right hand of righteousness, and will not let you fall. I pray that your name will be written in the Book of Life and that you will not rub it off; in the Name of Jesus.
Take these prayers with determination in your heart and be sure that something happens.
1.Every Spiritual Pharaoh, Herod and Goliath, I command you to fall down and die, in the Name of Jesus
2.Let the Fire of the God of Elijah; destroy all my spiritual Baals, in the Name of Jesus.
3.Let every challenge singing against me by satanic prophets, fall down and die, in the Name of Jesus
4. You fountain of problems in my life, dry up in the Name of Jesus.
5 You fountain of poverty in my life, dry up in the Name of Jesus.
6 I refuse to allow the angel of my blessing to depart, in the Name of Jesus.
7 Let my rod swallow up the rods of the enemy. After the order of Moses in the Name of Jesus.
8 Lord, Jesus, I will not leave you, until you bless me, in the Name of Jesus.
9 I refuse to reap any evil harvest in the Name of Jesus.
10 Let my foundation be adjusted to carry divine prosperity
11 Every oppression by night mares, vanish in the Name of Jesus.
- Fear
- Tension and stress
- Consequence of evil consumption
- Anti-promotion spirit
- Death and hell
- Disaster
- Restlessness and confusion
- Inherited poverty
- Sickness in the blood, bones, eyes, intestines, bladder, kidney, respiratory system, paralysis, unprofitable tree.
12 O Lord, multiply my joy, my peace and my blessings in the Name of Jesus.
13 You devil, take your legs off my finances, in the Name of Jesus.
- Marriage
- Childbearing
- Finances
- Promotion
14.Father Lord, advertise Your signs and wonders in my life, in the Name of Jesus
15.O God of Jacob. Change my name to the best, in the Name of Jesus.
16. O God that answereth by fire, answer me by fire, today in the Name of Jesus.
17. Lord Jesus, speak miracles unto my request in the Name of Jesus.
