INTERESTING FACTS : "A recent poll from LifeWay Research found that 89 percent of American households still own a Bible, with the average home having 4.1 Bibles. But owning a Bible is different from reading it..."[1]

 

Daily Reading : [GENESIS 32 - 34]

 

TEXT : Gen 32:24  And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day. 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. 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. Gen 32:27  And he said unto him, What is thy name? And he said, Jacob. Gen 32:28  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.

 

THEME :  FAITH

 

As we read, we continue to see God's Hand guiding history, as the angels of God are seen by Jacob in verse one of chapter 32. This "host" of God's, keeping in mind that God is the Lord of Hosts - the Lord of infinite armies - encourages Jacob and he names the place Mahanaim or the "double camp." Jacob sees through the Holy Spirit another camp next to his with a massive number of God's angels, hence the name "double camp." In other words, wherever Jacob goes he is not alone. God's angels are always with him. David in Psalm 34:7 records the same fact when he writes - "The angel of the LORD encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them." What a tremendous reassurance and inspiration for you and me to know God has His bodyguards all around us, to insure our safety at all times! God will also keep us secure in our voyage to Heaven, making certain no weapon formed against us shall prosper. Those who do not know Christ, or have refused His offer to forgive, strengthen, and guide them in life do not have this confidence. For this, as well as many other reasons, we should pity them and pray they come to enjoy the benefits we enjoy. Still, God gives His angels to watch over and minister to us since we are "heirs of salvation." [Heb. 1:14]

 

However, notice how distressed Jacob becomes when he hears his brother Esau is heading his way. Assuming Esau is still out to kill him, God shares with us Jacob's fear and distress in verse 7 of chapter 32. Where it says Jacob was "greatly afraid," the Hebrew states he was "full" of fear. Further, when it says he was "distressed," it means he was "bound up" or "hemmed in" by fear, like one who is going through a narrow slit in a rock wall and can barely move! Within a short time, Jacob goes from elation and comfort to exceptional fear and distress. Had we wrote the Bible, we would never include in our hero's personality such a condition of weakness. Yet, God shows not only Jacob's humanity, but ours as well. Jesus told Peter that though his spirit was willing [to serve Him even to death] he was unable to do so because of his humanity or "the flesh." Peter, like us, needed God's power to serve Him. Anyway, we are surprised to see a hero of the faith go from courage to cowardice so quickly. Again, men do not write stories this way. Heroes are heroes and villains are villains, and we draw the lines that separate them clearly. The Bible does not. God exposes our sinful nature and tendency to doubt God even after we have exceptional revelations and blessings.

 

Sure, we may allow the main character of our book to experience stress, since all heroes do. Yet, we would not allow them to become "distressed." There is a difference between stress and distress. More than that, we should know the difference between the two since we are prone - like Jacob, to let our stress turn to distress, which can easily defeat us if we do not know what to do. Distress is defined as - "extreme anxiety, sorrow, or pain; in medicine - a state of physical strain, especially difficulty in breathing."  {Oxford English Dictionary} Panic attacks are a form of distress, when a person experiences rapid heartbeat, shallow or difficult breathing, a feeling of choking, racing thoughts, sweaty hands and feet, and so forth. No doubt, Jacob had some physical symptoms of a panic attack when he heard the news about Esau. You may find this strange, but the Bible tells us the great men and women of the Bible were just like us, and their reaction to trouble and danger was many times similar to our response to the same or similar situations. The difference though is the patriarchs and prophets overcame their fears, and that makes all the difference in the world! Again, David writes in Psalm 34:4 - "I sought the Lord, and He heard me, and delivered me from all my fears." The Bible does not disguise the frailty of its characters, but it does show the power of God to deliver them. From this, we learn that all who will trust in God and His Word can have the same deliverance and victory. We see this truth in verses  24 - 28 of chapter 32 when, before Jacob meets Esau [who hugs, kisses, and greets his brother in the most lovable way] he once again faces God.

 

TRUTH FOR TODAY : "HAVING FAITH IN GOD IS A FIGHT!"

 

As Jacob is wrestling with his fear and anxiety about his welfare and the safety of his wives and children, he then begins to "wrestle with God." This fight last for hours throughout the night until the dawn arrives. Jacob being the true man of God he is, refuses to give up until he receives the blessing. This contest was real which, not only wearied him, but also left him with a limp. His hip was literally out of joint from the "man" who touched it, which had to be painful. It is not known if Jacob limped for the remainder of his life, but the fight was intense enough to cause Jacob to sustain a serious physical injury! Yet, the language of the Hebrew text does give us reason to believe Jacob sustained a permanent injury. In addition, the Jews no longer ate the leg of an animal unless they could remove the connective tissue that fastens the femur [upper leg] to the hip joint. If there was a case, for whatever reason, that no one could remove the tendon, then the Jews did not eat the leg of the animal at all.

 

Whether he wrestled with a God Himself in a theophany [an appearance of Jesus Christ in the Old Testament] or with an angelic emissary, we do not know. The Bible merely states that it was a "man." However, there is no doubt that it was a supernatural being as the context of the verses infer. Anyway, Jacob proves his faith by engaging in a "fight" with God that he intends to win, and will not give up until he prevails and receives a blessing. Once he prevails, Jacob has his named changed to Israel, and that name that stands to this day! Let us all learn what the faith of one man or woman can do for the good of so many others!

 

Some of the false and misguided teachers of our age present the subject of believing in Jesus Christ as though it were a mere walk in the park. We have just seen this is not the case. Jacob after a great revelation of God's bodyguards, soon after fears greatly and is distressed. Then he must fight with God for a blessing while his mind is still troubled and ill at ease. This is where we learn, faith in God is not an easy undertaking. It is simple, but not easy. In the New Testament, the Apostle Paul gives wisdom for those who have ears to hear. He states - "I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith." [2 Tim. 4:7] How intense was Pauls' fight of faith? He tells us in 2nd Corinthians.

 

"Are they Hebrews? so am I. Are they Israelites? so am I. Are they the seed of Abraham? so am I. Are they ministers of Christ? (I speak as a fool) I am more; in labours more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequent, in deaths oft. Of the Jews five times received I forty stripes save one. Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep; In journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren; In weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness. Beside those things that are without, that which cometh upon me daily, the care of all the churches.  Who is weak, and I am not weak? who is offended, and I burn not? If I must needs glory, I will glory of the things which concern mine infirmities." [2 Cor. 11:22 - 30]

 

Surely, the walk of faith has many battles, but the rewards make it worth the effort to win! Let us prevail as Jacob and have our name changed by the Lord when we meet him as overcomers and good soldiers in the army of the Lord!

 

"Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and I will write upon him my new name." [Rev. 3:12]