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Encounters

We live in a world where we want to see instant results. Our politicians, for example, wanted to know only a few hours after the polls closed just who would form the next government – in the event they had to wait considerably longer than that!

God, on the other hand, is not in a hurry about the work that He is carrying out and is quite prepared to late what might seem to us to be an inordinately long period of time! His dealings with Jacob are a case in point.

Jacob had left the Promised Land some 20 years previous to the events that are recorded for us in Gen.32 and God's work is far from complete. Jacob's wheeling and dealing might have secured for himself the birthright and his blessing but it had also brought the anger of his brother upon him. And so 20 years earlier Jacob had had to flee for his life as a lonely exile.

When he got to his relatives in Haran he soon discovered in his uncle Laban a crook every bit as devious as he was himself and his life was anything but straightforward. Despite it all, the Lord was taking care of Jacob's interests and he became a wealthy man.

Finally the time came for Jacob to make a break for it – the Lord told him to return to Bethel in the Promised Land – but Laban was far from pleased. Nevertheless the Lord intervened once again to protect Jacob.

And so we come to Gen.32 with Jacob poised to re-enter the Promised Land. But the question presents itself: Is he in a fit state to do so?

As the chapter unfolds it becomes clear that God has still more work to in Jacob's life. The positive thing from which we must take heart, is that God is fully prepared to do all that is necessary to make sure that Jacob is fit for the Land!

It was the Lord who had told Jacob to return to the land of his fathers and Jacob had gone away from Haran in obedience to that call. Now as he nears his destination God meets with him to encourage him.

When Jacob was on his way to leaving the land 20 years earlier he had had a vision of the angels of God and now on the way back he has another angelic encounter. Are we meant to understand from this that angels were involved in guarding the frontiers of the land as they were in guarding the frontiers of the Garden of Eden? Is in the implication that to enter the land of promise God's people should be living lives that correspond to God's righteousness?

The angels certainly serve as an encouragement to Jacob – maybe he saw them as representatives of military force that would afford him the protection and support he needed.

Whatever the case these angels were the means of bringing an unexpected blessing to Jacob.

As we read through these chapters we are presented with accounts of various different incidents in Jacob's life – but who are we to interpret them? Most often the Bible doesn't tell us and this leaves commentators having a field day: is Jacob to be viewed positively or negatively?

We all want the characters we read of in the Bible to be straightforward - either good or bad - but the trouble is that life is not like that. In real life we people's lives riddled with inconsistencies and the Bible is all about reality. And so perhaps the Bible's account of Jacob's life leaves us with some unanswered questions: his life does not progress smoothly but in a much more staccato fashion – 2 steps forward and 1 step back. His weakest moments may well retain some positive elements while his strongest are not immune from the weakness of his character.

The bush-telegraph ahs obviously functioned well and Jacob is well aware of where his brother Esau is living. As he returns towards the Promised Land it will only be a matter of time before there is some contact between the two brothers and Jacob hopes that Esau's animosity towards him has calmed down with the passage of time.

Surely it is right for Jacob to seek reconciliation with his brother and in a number of ways he does proceed well.

With the birthright and the blessing of his father in his possession Jacob was destined to rule over his brother but he doesn't come emphasizing his pre-eminence. In emphasizing the wealth he has gained in Haran he seems to be suggesting that Esau need not view his return as a threat; he's not coming home to lay claims to their father's property etc. He comes with a certain humility – although his father's blessing proclaimed him lord over his brother he uses respectful language of his brother: he refers twice to Esau as lord and to himself as a servant seeking favour.

And yet… there is no hint of apology for the way he treated Esau in the past, no hint of regret for the deceptions that he had employed.

Jacob seems to be imagining that he can carry on living a charmed life.

He is rudely brought back down to earth with a jolt! The messengers return from Esau and the word they bring is one that strikes terror into the heart of Jacob. Esau is coming to meet him and he has 400 hundred men with him! Surely this is for war – Jacob can't imagine any other explanation and as a result is full of fear and greatly distressed.

What a testimony to the effect a bad conscience can have upon a person! Jacob knows that he had acted wrongly in the past and that he has done nothing to put things right. In that light he interprets Esau's coming with 400 men just one way – it must be hostile.

And with panic grabbing hold of him Jacob's first reaction is to engage in some damage limitation. He divides his possessions into two camps trusting that if one camp be lost the other will survive.

Having done that and only then he turns to pray!

It seems that Jacob turns to pray as a last resort but surely that is better than not turning to prayer at all! Indeed as we read through the Genesis Jacob is not characterized as being a man of prayer. A strong case could be made that this is indeed the first time that Jacob truly prays at all! But now that he does prayer his prayer is a fine one and the longest of the recorded prayers in the Book of Genesis

Here is no hasty prayer. Jacob begins by clearly identifying the God to whom he prays:

The God of the covenant – the God of Abraham and of his father Isaac. This is also the God who has already spoken to Jacob.

God's word has been important to Jacob and he has acted in obedience to this word – if he is in trouble then it is down in part to God Himself. But before Jacob goes on to do what the Puritans used to refer to as "pleading the promises" Jacob makes a humble confession. Perhaps it has taken the extreme crisis of Esau coming against him to bring Jacob to his senses but he has come to them now and confesses his own personal unworthiness. Our Lord God is quite prepared to use our extremities to bring us to Himself! And where he has started a work He won't give up. Doesn't that remind you of what Paul would write centuries later to the Philippians?

Phil.1:6 "And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ."

God has been good to him and now Jacob confesses he didn't and doesn't deserve any of it. Grace has won out in Jacob's life a fact which he is clearly happy now to acknowledge.

And so having laid the foundation of his prayer Jacob now comes to his requests. He is no longer sure of his cocky self but is full of fear for himself but also for his family. When faced by an angry Esau 20 years earlier he could rely on his self-sufficiency and cleverness as he fled away. But now he is responsible not for himself alone but for his wives and children and his self-sufficiency has gone. But even as he thinks about his children he remembers the covenant promises – if Esau destroys him and his family what will become of those promises? And with growing trust he earnestly pleads with God the promises which God Himself has given. There are several verses that might have been on his mind:

Gen.28:15 "Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you."

Or

Gen.31:3 "Then the LORD said to Jacob, “Return to the land of your fathers and to your kindred, and I will be with you.”"

Or

Gen.31:13 "I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed a pillar and made a vow to me. Now arise, go out from this land and return to the land of your kindred.”’"

For the reference to numerous offspring – this was a promise made first to Abraham and then repeated to Isaac who doubtless had passed on to his sons what God had said.

Matthew Henry commenting on these verses said "The best we can say to God in prayer is what he has said to us."

Surely now, after such a prayer all will be well. But will it?

Having prayed there now follows an account of Jacob's next plan. Does it reflect trust in God or does it indicate a return on Jacob's part to his wheeler-dealer days?

Whatever it is it does use a method that was and is common to pagan religions. Jacob by sending a succession of gifts ahead of him to his brother Esau is trying to placate him just as many imagine that they can placate an angry God by a series of gifts.

It won't work for Jacob and it won't work for you! Jacob will not find peace for his troubled conscience through crafty negotiation and generous gifts. He will only find rest for his conscience and preparation for a new life in the grace of God – how he needs to experience more fully the grace of God and that is just about to happen! Has it happened for you?

Jacob is unsettled and worried. During the night he takes his wives and children over the river Jabbok – a risky and dangerous thing to do in the dark. Then he is left alone. Does he want some calm in order to plan what to do next?

And then all of a sudden a man has jumped on and he's involved in a desperate wrestling match. He feared the arrival of Esau – was it him? Was it a bandit? Who was it? Jacob didn't know but had the fight of his life on his hands.

The assailant doesn't overcome Jacob – but what an extraordinary sequence of events then takes place. A sequence that gives Jacob cause for thought.

Seeing he didn't prevail over Jacob the man simply touches his hip and throws it out of joint! Jacob is now in no fit state to fight any longer but the stranger doesn't press home his advantage but asks for Jacob to let go of him as daybreak is approaching. And Jacob clings on calling for a blessing!

Somehow Jacob has come to realise that his assailant is no ordinary person – a greater bestows blessing on a lesser – and Jacob longs for blessing!

The response he gets is a strange one – "What is your name?" The question was a very similar one to that put by his father 20 years earlier "Who are you my son? as he strove to wrest his father's blessing that was due to Esau.

This time no lies are found on Jacob's lips but a straightforward declaration which in Jacob's case amounted to a confession.  "Jacob" – the name was no mere label chosen because his parents liked the sound of it, it was descriptive of his character, his whole life up to this point had been dominated by this twisted nature. The danger he was in now was due to the outworkings of that nature and Jacob simply at last comes clean.

And his assailant responds by changing Jacob's name. And with this we arrive at the central point of the whole episode. Now you can easily change your name by Deed Poll by the payment of a relatively small fee - £2.99 was the cheapest I saw – but oh you'll find it is not such an easy thing to change your character! Jacob's name change implied a change of character and none can do that but God alone!

Jacob's name reflects the wrestle he's had with God – Israel – he strives with God or God strives.

There is no way that Jacob could fight and prevail with God but God graciously came to him and didn't crush him but led him through this encounter to a deep appreciation of who he was and what his needs were!

Jacob is now ready for the encounter with Esau – grace has transformed him. He is ready too by the same token to enter the Promised Land because he has been transformed by God's grace. He is no longer the man he was, that scheming and deceitful self-reliant, self-sufficient person living upon his wits. He has now been brought to rely upon God. He has striven with God but found that it is:

Zech.4:6 "Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the LORD of hosts."

Jacob's suspicions concerning his assailant, that he was no ordinary man are confirmed – he realizes that this is none other than God with whom he has been wrestling and he has received God's blessing! He names the place where the encounter took place – this event must be immortalized!

The events that took place in Jacob/Israel's life in that fateful encounter are indeed solemnly remembered in three distinct ways because Jacob was not to be seen as an isolated individual only – he was that but so much more. He was to be a pattern of the nation that came from his loins and he serves to as a pattern for all who would enter the promised land.

a.     His name is changed

b.     The place receives a memorial name

c.     The dietary practice would recall these events – every time an animal was slaughtered in fact!

When the Israelites left Egypt after 400 years sojourning there the generation of wicked faithless men died in the wilderness not being counted worthy of entering the land.

Years later when the nation having oscillated from imitating Jacob to imitating Israel became at last thoroughly corrupt she was vomited out of the land into exile in Babylon where the the evils of idolatry were purged from the nation.

And turning to the NT we find Jesus urging His hearers in the following terms:

Lk.13:24 "Strive to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able."

This does not mean that the Christian is to secure his own entry into the Kingdom but that he must make every effort to ensure that he is in Christ who is that narrow door!

There are many things that oppose entry into the Kingdom of God. Jacob found he was opposed by his brother or rather it was his old faults and errors that came back to haunt him. Your past failures may appear so large to you at times that you must simply try to do something about them. The tragedy is when you go about it in the wrong way – when you resort to your clever schemes and plans, when you rely on sending "gifts" on ahead of you. The only way to enter the Kingdom of God is by grace. As Jacob clung on as God wrestled with him so must you, don't let Him go until He changes your character by His grace – the Book of Revelation talks about us receiving a new name – don't let Him go but cling until He blesses you too!

Amen.