| [0.00 --> 7.00] There we are, there we are. Nice and loud, coming through clearly. It's good to be with | |
| [7.00 --> 10.50] you all once again this morning. It's been a few weeks since I've been here, and it's | |
| [10.50 --> 16.40] a joy to be in this building again with so many familiar faces here as well. Even though | |
| [16.40 --> 20.36] 2020 has been one of the strangest years, probably the strangest year that I have ever | |
| [20.36 --> 25.52] lived through, in some ways it's actually flown by. I don't know about any of you, but | |
| [25.52 --> 29.18] the last couple months for me especially have really seemed to truck along. I've had a very | |
| [29.18 --> 35.16] full last couple of months. Since I last preached here on the 14th of June, I've done some camping, | |
| [35.52 --> 40.74] I've done a lot of reading, I handily defeated both Matt and Aaron in golf. I wasn't even | |
| [40.74 --> 46.04] close actually, it felt bad for them. And I started and finished a course on the book of | |
| [46.04 --> 50.60] Genesis, which we're going to look at today. In those two months, of course, our world has | |
| [50.60 --> 55.86] kept spinning as well. Once again, this week, social injustice, it's been brought to the | |
| [55.86 --> 60.24] forefront of our minds. It's been all over the news due to another black man being shot | |
| [60.24 --> 65.72] by a cop in Wisconsin. To remind you that while we can talk and while we can listen and while | |
| [65.72 --> 72.26] there's things posted on social media, we live in a very, very broken world. And it's full | |
| [72.26 --> 75.38] of sin, and it's in need of much prayer. | |
| [75.38 --> 82.58] Today's sermon is going to be about God prevailing in the lives of His people. Now, today's not | |
| [82.58 --> 88.34] specifically a text on racism. It's not specifically a text on social injustice. | |
| [89.32 --> 96.04] And I don't want to be guilty of trying to spin God's Word and fit it into a context that we find | |
| [96.04 --> 100.88] ourselves this week here in 2020 North America, because I don't think you can manipulate the Word | |
| [100.88 --> 107.24] of God that way. But I don't want to shy away from the reality of the culture and the times that we | |
| [107.24 --> 114.00] find ourselves in as well. What I want to do is I want to open up the Word of God today, and I want | |
| [114.00 --> 120.78] to let God speak through that Word. This is a text about God prevailing over all. So while I read it, | |
| [120.78 --> 125.36] I want to challenge us all while we think about this. We can think about this ancient story that | |
| [125.36 --> 132.62] happened so long ago. How do we grasp the deep-rooted truths within this story, and how do | |
| [132.62 --> 138.60] we apply it to this context that we find it today? See, God prevailing over all, it might just be the | |
| [138.60 --> 144.28] greatest hope that we have in the midst of all of this stuff happening right now. So in that vein, | |
| [144.32 --> 147.32] I'd like to challenge you all, and actually not challenge you, I'd like to encourage you all. I hope | |
| [147.32 --> 151.80] many of you have your Bibles with you here. If you're online, please grab a Bible close to you. Hit | |
| [151.80 --> 156.82] pause even if you have to, and go grab your Bibles. We're going to read through this story | |
| [156.82 --> 165.08] of Jacob wrestling God. It's found in Genesis 32, verses 22 to 32. It's a lot of twos. Genesis 32, | |
| [165.18 --> 169.56] 22 to 32. Now we're going to read the whole thing through first, and then my message, I'm going to do | |
| [169.56 --> 173.26] something a little bit different today. We're going to walk our way through each verse, one or two verses | |
| [173.26 --> 177.84] at a time, and we're going to specifically dissect it that way. So you're going to want to have your | |
| [177.84 --> 185.60] Bibles open in front of you as well this whole time. So Genesis 32, verses 22 to 32. It reads like | |
| [185.60 --> 194.06] this. That night Jacob got up and took his two wives, his two female servants, and his eleven sons, | |
| [194.56 --> 201.68] and crossed the ford of the Jabbok. After he had sent them across the stream, he sent over all his | |
| [201.68 --> 209.66] possessions. So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak. When the man saw | |
| [209.66 --> 215.02] that he could not overpower him, he touched the socket of Jacob's hip so that his hip was wrenched | |
| [215.02 --> 220.34] as he wrestled with the man. Then the man said, let me go, for it is daybreak. But Jacob replied, | |
| [220.44 --> 228.38] I will not let you go unless you bless me. The man asked him, what is your name? Jacob, he answered. | |
| [228.38 --> 233.36] Then the man said, your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with | |
| [233.36 --> 239.78] God and with humans and have overcome. Jacob said, please tell me your name. But he replied, | |
| [239.86 --> 245.70] why do you ask my name? And then he blessed him there. So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, | |
| [245.88 --> 252.66] it is because I saw God face to face, and yet my life was spared. The sun rose above him, and he passed | |
| [252.66 --> 258.32] Peniel, and he was limping because of his hip. Therefore, to this day, the Israelites do not eat the | |
| [258.32 --> 263.62] tendon attached to the socket of the hip, because the socket of Jacob's hip was touched near the | |
| [263.62 --> 271.32] tendon. The reading, the word. And before we dig into these verses, we do have to figure out how we | |
| [271.32 --> 276.06] got here. Where does this story fit into the grand story? Well, after spending years away from his family, | |
| [276.26 --> 284.26] Jacob has now decided he wants to return home. He wants to return home. He wants to confront his | |
| [284.26 --> 289.92] brother, whom you might remember. Jacob tricked Esau, his brother, out of his blessing, out of his | |
| [289.92 --> 295.46] birthright. As he got closer to home, though, Jacob's fear of his brother and what Esau might do to him | |
| [295.46 --> 301.40] grew, and he was getting nervous about meeting him again. But he trudged onward, and he actually even | |
| [301.40 --> 306.38] sent a peace offering, a gift ahead of him, to meet with Esau, maybe to soften the blow a little bit. | |
| [306.38 --> 313.88] Now, lots had changed since Jacob had left. He had married Leah and Rachel. He had obtained a number | |
| [313.88 --> 319.50] of servants. He even had enough children to form a new reality TV contract at that time. | |
| [320.28 --> 324.84] He's got a ton of possessions. Most of those possessions, he actually tricked his uncle Laban | |
| [324.84 --> 332.14] out of. And now he was very close to home. He just had to cross this one last river. And that's where | |
| [332.14 --> 337.18] our text begins. So again, we're going to go through this verse by verse, one verse at a time, | |
| [337.22 --> 339.50] and we're actually going to start—I lied—we're going to start with two verses. We're going to | |
| [339.50 --> 342.70] start with these first two verses, because it sort of sets the scene for this text. | |
| [342.94 --> 347.42] That night, Jacob got up, and he took his two wives, his two female servants, and his eleven sons | |
| [347.42 --> 352.62] and crossed the fort of the Dabak. After he had sent them across the stream, he sent over all his | |
| [352.62 --> 358.18] possessions. So after sending a peace offering ahead of him to meet with Esau ahead of time, | |
| [358.18 --> 362.62] Jacob sends his wives, his servants, his children, and his possessions across the river. | |
| [363.50 --> 369.98] But Jacob doesn't go. He doesn't cross the Dabak with his family. It's actually a little bit unclear | |
| [369.98 --> 374.96] why he doesn't go. The chapter beforehand, he spent praying to God. He was really nervous about meeting | |
| [374.96 --> 380.66] his brother, and so perhaps it was anxiety or fear that kept him on the other side of this river. | |
| [381.82 --> 385.40] That being said, it was actually really important for the events of this story that he was alone, | |
| [385.40 --> 393.22] so it might have been even providential that he doesn't go. Either way, Jacob's alone on the one | |
| [393.22 --> 399.84] side of a river, and he's there for the night. And then we get to what we might assume is the climax | |
| [399.84 --> 405.78] of this story already here in verse 24, and that reads like this, so Jacob was left alone, | |
| [405.78 --> 415.16] and a man wrestled with him till daybreak. Jacob was alone at night, and he wrestled a mysterious man | |
| [415.16 --> 422.42] until dawn. That's the most well-known part of this story, that the wrestling match between Jacob and | |
| [422.42 --> 427.98] this mystery man. However, it actually only makes up one small part of one verse in this whole 10-verse | |
| [427.98 --> 433.78] story. That's crazy, isn't it? I find that fascinating. That shows that perhaps the main point of this | |
| [433.78 --> 440.04] story is not actually this wrestling match. It's not actually this fight between this man. So let's hold | |
| [440.04 --> 444.12] on to that for a second while we continue to look at this verse a little closer. There's two things about | |
| [444.12 --> 450.70] this verse that stand out. The first is, we don't know anything about this man right now. The text | |
| [450.70 --> 456.48] reveals nothing about his identity yet. And so at this point, we're left to wonder, who is this man? | |
| [456.60 --> 465.04] Why does he wrestle with Jacob? The second is that this wrestling match was probably hours long. | |
| [467.04 --> 471.58] An hours-long wrestling match between Jacob and this mystery man occurs. Now, it would have taken | |
| [471.58 --> 479.18] a ton of energy and a ton of strength for Jacob to wrestle this man for hours at night. But if we | |
| [479.18 --> 483.56] look at Jacob's life, we realize that physical strength is a large characterization of it. | |
| [484.54 --> 489.18] In Genesis 25, right at the beginning when he's born, he grabs the heel of Esau, his twin brother, | |
| [489.26 --> 495.04] as he's coming out of the womb. In Genesis 29, he moves this giant stone away from a well | |
| [495.04 --> 502.12] so that Rachel, his future wife's sheep, can drink. And in Genesis 31, it says that he worked at Laban's | |
| [502.12 --> 510.04] herd for 20 years in extremely difficult condition. His own physical strength was something that Jacob | |
| [510.04 --> 516.16] had come to depend on all his life. And so this wrestling match for a knight was something that | |
| [516.16 --> 521.32] he could excel at. And yet, this is a story that we'll find out about transformation. | |
| [521.32 --> 529.04] And what Jacob goes through because of this man changes him forever. Verse 25, we'll keep moving | |
| [529.04 --> 533.94] on. When the man saw that he could not overpower him, so the man could not overpower Jacob, | |
| [534.44 --> 540.40] he touched the socket of Jacob's hip so that his hip was wretched or dislocated, as other translations | |
| [540.40 --> 547.54] say, as he wrestled with him. So this mystery man realizes that Jacob's not giving up. He's not | |
| [547.54 --> 553.36] going to let up. He's going to keep wrestling. And so he touches Jacob's hip, and he dislocates it. | |
| [556.10 --> 559.32] Now, only someone with supernatural powers could do that. Agreed? | |
| [561.94 --> 566.26] Now, there's a few thoughts on who the supernatural man, who the supernatural being could be. | |
| [566.64 --> 571.66] In Hosea, in his book, in chapter 12, Hosea calls this man in this story an angel. | |
| [572.84 --> 576.32] St. Augustine, a little bit later, he thinks this man was actually a Christ figure, | |
| [576.32 --> 580.58] Christ coming down early and wrestling with Jacob. Jacob later on in this story, we'll find out later, | |
| [580.90 --> 582.28] he thinks it was God himself. | |
| [585.08 --> 590.58] But be it an angel, be it a Christ figure, be it physically God incarnate, | |
| [592.14 --> 598.30] for us here today, the importance is not who this man was, but who this man represented. | |
| [598.30 --> 608.92] He represented the living God. Jacob wrestled with God that night, either literally or symbolically. | |
| [609.58 --> 613.38] But the significance of the interaction remains, whether this man was an angel, | |
| [613.86 --> 619.94] Christ himself, or God incarnate. And so God initiates this wrestling match with Jacob, | |
| [619.94 --> 625.62] and when Jacob doesn't back down, God makes life even more difficult for him by dislocating | |
| [625.62 --> 632.22] his hip. Now, this to me raises all sorts of questions. Why would a good God come down to | |
| [632.22 --> 639.02] earth and physically harm someone? Why would God intervene in someone's life only to cause them | |
| [639.02 --> 646.36] pain? As the story continues, we start to see some answers to those questions. Even though Jacob's hip | |
| [646.36 --> 652.02] gets dislocated, the wrestling continues. But here the story shifts a little bit. You'll notice the | |
| [652.02 --> 657.02] tone shifts. Up until now, it's just this physical battle between two men, but the tone is about to | |
| [657.02 --> 667.74] change. Verse 26, then the man said, let me go, for it is daybreak. But Jacob replied, I will not let you | |
| [667.74 --> 677.20] go unless you bless me. That is strange, isn't it? I find that very peculiar. Jacob's been wrestling | |
| [677.20 --> 682.50] with this man all night, fighting this man for hours, and then all of a sudden, he doesn't actually | |
| [682.50 --> 692.94] care about winning the fight anymore. He wants a blessing. Now Jacob's crippled in his physical | |
| [692.94 --> 699.86] strength with his hip, and all of a sudden, he becomes very bold in his faith. See, even though | |
| [699.86 --> 705.28] the text doesn't identify who this man is until a little bit later, the fact that Jacob believed | |
| [705.28 --> 712.20] that this man could bless him is a telltale sign that he understood who this man represented, or perhaps | |
| [712.20 --> 720.46] who this man was. Jacob, the stealer of his brother's blessing, was now looking for a blessing | |
| [720.46 --> 728.12] from God. And while the wrestling match between God and Jacob is the centerpiece of this story, | |
| [728.68 --> 734.18] it's these next two verses that we're going to read in a second, verses 27 and 28, that contain | |
| [734.18 --> 740.54] the deep-rooted truths in this story for us today. Verse 27 and 28, they read like this, | |
| [741.38 --> 749.34] the man asked him, what is your name? Jacob, he answered. Then the man said, your name will no longer | |
| [749.34 --> 757.60] be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with humans and have overcome, | |
| [758.28 --> 767.72] or as the ESV more accurately puts it, have prevailed. That's it. That's the focal point of this story. | |
| [767.98 --> 772.46] While the emphasis of the story is the wrestling match for sure, the purpose of that wrestling match, | |
| [772.46 --> 782.16] the reason the wrestling match was initiated in the first place was to bless Jacob and change his name. | |
| [784.06 --> 789.66] Names are important. They were especially important back in the ancient Near East. They signified | |
| [789.66 --> 795.56] one's character or one's personality. In the cultures of the Old Testament, your name was linked to your | |
| [795.56 --> 802.04] nature. So what you were named often reflected the person that you would become. For example, | |
| [802.72 --> 812.42] Abraham means father of many. Ruth means friend. Ezra means help. Jeremiah means God will raise up. | |
| [813.18 --> 820.94] All of those people in the Old Testament embodied what their names meant. So what does Jacob mean? | |
| [820.94 --> 832.44] It means deceiver. Something that he did all his life. For years, Jacob relied on himself and his own | |
| [832.44 --> 838.62] wit to get through life. He deceived his way to his brother's inheritance in Genesis chapter 27. He tricked | |
| [838.62 --> 844.96] his uncle Laban into getting the best herds for himself in Genesis chapter 30, and he misleads his uncle | |
| [844.96 --> 852.84] once again in Genesis 31 as he flees from him. Jacob relies on himself all his life. He relies on his | |
| [852.84 --> 863.22] strength. He relies on his deception. But God changes that. God had a new plan. God changed Jacob's name. | |
| [864.60 --> 872.08] No longer was he Jacob the deceiver. Now he was Israel, which means God prevails. | |
| [872.08 --> 878.64] Jacob wasn't going to be the deceiver anymore. He wasn't going to be able to rely on himself going | |
| [878.64 --> 885.62] forward. God was stepping in, and he was taking charge of Jacob's life. First, God chose to fight | |
| [885.62 --> 895.10] with Jacob, dislocating his hip in the process. Second, God was going to fight for Jacob, for Israel, | |
| [895.90 --> 898.14] prevailing for him and prevailing for his future. | |
| [898.14 --> 903.66] We're going to stay on these two verses for a while because it's so important. Then this new name | |
| [903.66 --> 909.22] for Jacob, it has far-reaching implications for his descendants as well. See, the nation, of course, | |
| [909.38 --> 916.10] was named after Jacob's new name. The nation was Israel, symbolizing how God was going to prevail for | |
| [916.10 --> 922.34] them as well. God would lead them to triumph over their enemies and fight for them throughout time. | |
| [922.34 --> 928.40] And then, in the ultimate act of God prevailing for his people, God is going to send his Son, | |
| [928.92 --> 934.42] Jesus Christ, to die on the cross and defeat sin and death for all who believe. | |
| [937.96 --> 939.60] God prevails. | |
| [939.60 --> 949.56] God prevails. However, while we know how the story gets from Jacob to the cross, and we know what God's | |
| [949.56 --> 956.90] plan was with Christ's death and resurrection for us, we also know how the nation of Israel | |
| [956.90 --> 964.22] struggled with this promise throughout history. Countless times throughout the Old Testament, | |
| [964.22 --> 970.72] the nation of Israel forgets that God is on their side prevailing for them. And what's fascinating | |
| [970.72 --> 978.78] is this is all tied to Jacob's name as well. There was another name change in Genesis. In Genesis | |
| [978.78 --> 984.62] chapter 17, there's a man named Abram, and before God gives his covenant, God changes Abram's name to | |
| [984.62 --> 990.30] Abraham, and from that point on in the Bible, he is only referred to as Abraham. That was his new name. | |
| [990.30 --> 997.26] Well, there's a name change here too in Genesis 32. But Jacob is not called Jacob, or not called | |
| [997.26 --> 1002.40] Israel for the rest of Scripture. The rest of Scripture uses Jacob and Israel interchangeably | |
| [1002.40 --> 1008.00] throughout. He calls them by both names throughout all of Scripture. For example, this story takes | |
| [1008.00 --> 1016.52] place in Genesis 32. But going forward, the Bible refers to this man as Jacob in Genesis 35 verse 14, | |
| [1016.52 --> 1024.68] Genesis 37 verse 1, and Genesis 42 verse 29. But he's also called Israel in Genesis 35 verse 22, | |
| [1024.68 --> 1030.60] in Genesis 43 verse 11, and in Genesis 46 verse 1. Jacob and Israel get interchanged throughout the entire | |
| [1030.60 --> 1036.82] book of the Bible. And it's really highlighted actually in Psalm 147 verse 19, and in that one verse, | |
| [1037.48 --> 1043.42] the psalmist refers to both the person and the nation as Jacob and Israel in the same sentence. | |
| [1046.52 --> 1053.08] Even though God changed Jacob's name from deceiver to God prevails, he has called both names throughout | |
| [1053.08 --> 1060.82] Scripture from that point on, and this highlights that even though God prevails, Israel, the man, | |
| [1061.38 --> 1068.76] the nation, his descendants sitting in this room today, they continue to rely on themselves. | |
| [1068.76 --> 1077.74] Even though this story is talking about God taking Jacob the deceiver and showing him that he no longer | |
| [1077.74 --> 1083.20] needs to rely on himself anymore, that God prevails, and even though the truth of that provision has been | |
| [1083.20 --> 1092.24] true throughout history, Jacob would still fail to lean into God's provision and rely on him. | |
| [1092.24 --> 1102.84] And that should hit us right in the heart. Because that promise of God's prevailing, of God's provision | |
| [1102.84 --> 1109.46] is for us all, and yet we're all guilty of going our own way, doing our own thing, using deception | |
| [1109.46 --> 1116.98] to get what we want. We rely on ourselves, not on God. Sometimes we're good. Sometimes we follow God. | |
| [1116.98 --> 1122.30] Sometimes we depend on him. We lean on him when things get weary. Sometimes we are Israels. | |
| [1123.82 --> 1131.24] But other times we don't. We rely on our own understanding. Sometimes we're selfish. Sometimes | |
| [1131.24 --> 1137.60] we're short-sighted. Sometimes we're independent rather than dependent on God. And sometimes we're Jacobs. | |
| [1137.60 --> 1149.48] And while that tension exists in all our lives, this story is not over. God was still highlighting | |
| [1149.48 --> 1156.64] some very important truths to Jacob, now Israel, and those truths trickled down to all of us here | |
| [1156.64 --> 1162.36] today. Let's keep reading. Verse 29. Verse 29 says this, Jacob said, please tell me your name | |
| [1162.36 --> 1168.72] to this mystery man. But he replied, why do you ask my name? And then he blessed him there. | |
| [1170.08 --> 1175.00] Now there's a parallel between this verse and a verse found in Judges 13. In Judges, an angelic | |
| [1175.00 --> 1180.12] messenger visits Samson's parents and tells them that they will have a son. But when the parents ask | |
| [1180.12 --> 1187.52] the angel's name, the angel refuses, for they would not understand anyways. The language in that story | |
| [1187.52 --> 1193.32] and this story are remarkably similar. This is a similar situation. Jacob, though, has refused to | |
| [1193.32 --> 1197.18] know the name of this, of his assailant, of this man who wrestled with him. | |
| [1200.52 --> 1207.52] But he has given a new name. And instead, God blesses him. And he promises him that he, that God will | |
| [1207.52 --> 1213.62] prevail on his behalf. Verse 30. So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, it is because I saw God face to | |
| [1213.62 --> 1221.90] face, and yet my life was spared. So after Jacob receives a new name and a blessing, Jacob, he's once | |
| [1221.90 --> 1231.58] again left alone. In this verse, though, Jacob comes to a very important discovery. He calls the place | |
| [1231.58 --> 1237.74] Peniel, which means the face of God. And the reason for him changing the name of this place is very | |
| [1237.74 --> 1244.44] important. Notice this. Jacob does not say that he wrestled with God and prevailed, or that he deceived | |
| [1244.44 --> 1251.42] God and got the blessing he wanted. He called the place Peniel because he saw God face to face, | |
| [1252.24 --> 1262.88] and his life was spared. Jacob realized that it was only for God's mercy that he escaped that with his life. | |
| [1262.88 --> 1269.36] It had nothing to do with him. It had nothing to do with his strength. It had nothing to do with his | |
| [1269.36 --> 1277.34] deception. It had nothing to do with anything he could bring to the table. It was all God. No longer | |
| [1277.34 --> 1283.78] was he in charge of his own narrative, but God's grace had interceded and showed Jacob that he only | |
| [1283.78 --> 1291.06] existed because God prevailed in his life. No matter what obstacles would appear before him going forward, | |
| [1291.06 --> 1296.94] God promised to prevail for him. Again, like he promises for all of us. | |
| [1299.16 --> 1305.24] Verse 31, the sun rose above him as he passed Peniel, and he was limping because of his hip. | |
| [1307.54 --> 1311.28] It's interesting, Jacob left this altercation a new man in more ways than one. | |
| [1312.76 --> 1318.60] Yes, he got his name changed, but now he was actually physically forced to rely on God's strength | |
| [1318.60 --> 1325.56] rather than his own because he now walked with this limp. This was a new man, not only marked with a new | |
| [1325.56 --> 1333.20] spiritual perspective, but a new physical reality as well, sealed and marked by God as he continued on | |
| [1333.20 --> 1342.92] his journey. And just like Jacob now walked with a limp, sometimes when God intercedes in our lives, | |
| [1342.92 --> 1349.80] sure, the promises are great. The ramification of God taking over is amazing, but the reality is that | |
| [1349.80 --> 1359.52] sometimes when God intercedes, we may be left limping. We may be left limping, unable to rely on our own | |
| [1359.52 --> 1368.70] strength. Sometimes when God takes over our lives, he reminds us that he is the only way forward. | |
| [1368.70 --> 1380.56] We all have our limps. The challenge is to view those limps as reminders of how God is in control | |
| [1380.56 --> 1385.00] and not view them as obstacles that we have to overcome ourselves. | |
| [1388.28 --> 1390.76] Finally, the last verse of this story says this, | |
| [1390.84 --> 1394.62] Therefore, to this day the Israelites do not eat the tendon attached to the socket of the hip, | |
| [1394.62 --> 1400.32] because the socket of Jacob's hip was touched near the tendon. So this passage ends with this cultural | |
| [1400.32 --> 1405.02] practice that God's people would follow from that day forward. No longer would they eat the meat found | |
| [1405.02 --> 1411.10] in that location of the thigh where Jacob's hip was touched by God, because by doing that, | |
| [1411.32 --> 1416.90] the Israelites were then constantly reminded of this promise that God would prevail in their lives. | |
| [1416.90 --> 1420.42] So what do we take from this story? | |
| [1423.60 --> 1428.80] Jacob was taught that he no longer was going to be able to lean on his own strengths, | |
| [1429.30 --> 1434.16] but that he needed the power of God's provision, the power of God's prevailing presence | |
| [1434.16 --> 1440.06] and faithfulness to walk alongside him. The nation of Israel then, Jacob's descendants, | |
| [1440.26 --> 1445.42] would learn much the same thing. Israel's ultimate victory was never going to come | |
| [1445.42 --> 1454.66] by their own power. It was going to come by the grace and mercy of God. Both of the Israels then, | |
| [1454.76 --> 1460.84] the man and the nation, would learn that self-sufficiency is incompatible with the work of God. | |
| [1461.84 --> 1471.58] Faith alone overcomes the world. Self-sufficiency is incompatible with the work of God. Faith alone | |
| [1471.58 --> 1479.06] overcomes the world. G.J. Wenham sums this story up nicely. He says this, he says, | |
| [1479.14 --> 1484.42] God's sovereignty and faithfulness to his promise, despite all human unworthiness, | |
| [1484.94 --> 1492.76] is demonstrated right here. Jacob is no longer the strong, victorious controller of the divine, | |
| [1492.76 --> 1500.72] but he's now Israel, who is totally dependent on God's grace. | |
| [1502.50 --> 1509.68] Brothers and sisters, that should be our realization as well. As the Apostle Paul wrote thousands of | |
| [1509.68 --> 1515.28] years later to the church in Ephesus, it is by grace that you have been saved through faith, | |
| [1515.28 --> 1523.86] and this is not from yourselves. It is a gift from God, not by works, so that no one can boast. | |
| [1525.76 --> 1532.18] Self-sufficiency is incompatible with the work of God. Jacob's new name, which was birthed from his | |
| [1532.18 --> 1539.94] wrestling match with God, it highlights this beautifully. And so we're to go out with this | |
| [1539.94 --> 1545.48] knowledge. We're supposed to understand that it is by faith that we can overcome the shackles of this | |
| [1545.48 --> 1552.58] world. It is through God who promises to prevail in our lives so that we are free to live out this truth, | |
| [1553.72 --> 1562.14] unhindered by the sin that so easily entangles us. God will prevail in our lives. | |
| [1562.14 --> 1572.50] It might be a fight. God's prevailing might cause us to limp even. But God will transform us, | |
| [1572.94 --> 1580.42] and we can rest in the power of the cross and the grace found in our Lord Jesus Christ as the ultimate | |
| [1580.42 --> 1586.00] act of God's prevailing for our lives. Amen. Please pray with me. | |
| [1586.00 --> 1594.22] Our Father in heaven, we hear a story like this, | |
| [1595.32 --> 1601.68] and when we read it for its face value, sometimes it's hard to see all the nuance in it, Lord. | |
| [1604.34 --> 1608.58] And God, we see how you intervened in Jacob's life and how you promised to prevail for him, | |
| [1609.42 --> 1614.18] and we know that that promise was true for his descendants and for us as well. | |
| [1614.18 --> 1619.94] But Lord, we are so often guilty of trying to take charge of our own lives, trying to do things | |
| [1619.94 --> 1626.36] ourselves, forgetting that you have a plan for all of us. And so, God, we pray that you will intervene | |
| [1626.36 --> 1636.60] in our lives. Lord, you have sent your Spirit here to do just that, and we ask that the Spirit empower us | |
| [1636.60 --> 1642.80] to know that you are continually prevailing in our lives. You have prevailed already at the cross, | |
| [1642.80 --> 1648.40] Lord. Grace and mercy is for us, and we are grateful for that. And God, as we enter into | |
| [1648.40 --> 1657.42] this week upcoming, Lord, we ask that we rely on your strength, not ours. We pray this in your name. Amen. | |
| [1657.42 --> 1657.52] Amen. | |
| [1657.52 --> 1657.56] Amen. | |
| [1657.56 --> 1657.60] Amen. | |