Genesis – Jacob becomes Israel
Ask.
- Have you ever felt like you’ve screwed up a friendship so bad that it will never be the same?
- Have you ever felt that you’ve messed up so bad that you are too ashamed to even pray to God?
Listen.
Eventually Abram and Sarai settled with his family in the land of Canaan. It was here that God changed their names to Abraham and Sarah and blessed them with a son named Isaac. He in turn had two sons named Esau and Jacob. They were twins, even Esau was considered the first born, and it was said that they struggled against each other as far back as anyone could remember.
Years later, an adult Jacob stood alone facing the horizon. He was afraid. In the morning, he would see his Esau for the first time in years. And there was a very real possibility that his brother would kill him on the spot. Years ago, as their father Isaac lay dying, Jacob had cheated Esau out of his inheritance because in their culture the eldest son stood to inherit the father’s wealth and Jacob wanted to make sure he wasn’t left with nothing. When Esau realized he had been tricked, he was filled with rage. Isaac was forced to flee and make a new life for himself among people who were not his family.
In their world, this was extremely difficult and dangerous. Family connections were all that one had for protection. No one person was equipped to survive alone. In his travels, Jacob found himself being cheated by those he came into contact with – even by his future father-in-law. He married and became a father but always wondered how things might have been had he not lied to Isaac and betrayed Esau. Eventually he came to need his brother to survive. Times were hard and his family would not survive on their own. He was forced to go home and ask to be taken back into his brother’s care. But even as he hoped that he’d be welcomed home, he was still fearful that his brother might kill him and finally get revenge.
The day before Jacob was to meet Esau again after all these years, he crossed a river ford by himself and camped out alone, leaving the rest of his family and servants behind him on the other side of the river. If Esau did decide to kill him, at least they would be able to get to safety. That night, he tossed and turned, worried about the next day’s meeting. As he wrestled with his worries in the early hours of that morning, he began to wrestle with another man, a stranger, whom he’d never seen before. Neither could force the other to give up and as day started to break, the strange man struck Jacob in the hip, throwing it out of socket. And still, Jacob would not let go. Finally the stranger agreed to give him a blessing but also told him that from now on he would be called Israel which means “wrestles with God.”
The next day when this newly blessed Jacob met his brother Esau, he bowed very low as a servant would to his master. This was also a very vulnerable position — with his neck down his brother could easily draw his sword and cut off his head with one blow. But instead of being killed or treated harshly, Esau lifted him up, grabbed him in a deep embrace and forgave him. All of Jacob’s worries had been for nothing. He was welcomed back into the Promised Land, into relationship with God and back into his own family. He was so overwhelmed by this love that he tried to give most of his possessions to his brother to show how sorry he was for what he had cheated him out of all those years before.
But Esau said, “I have enough, my brother; keep what you have for yourself.” Jacob said, “No, please; if I find favor with you, then accept my present from my hand; for truly to see your face is like seeing the face of God — since you have received me with such favor. Please accept my gift that is brought to you, because God has dealt graciously with me, and because I have everything I want.” (Genesis 33:9-11a)
Think.
We all wrestle with God or have conflicts with those close to us at some point. But life is almost never a zero-sum game where we get to play once and then if we lose we’re done forever. Isaac thought that cheating his brother out of what he deserved from their father or by running away from his responsibilities would keep him out of God’s grace forever. But he was so wrong.
If you think that you’ve burned a bridge in your life, maybe you are wrong too. Our God is a God of second chances for screw-ups.
Remember.
You are good enough. You may wrestle with God’s presence in your life. And he’s okay with that. A whole nation, Israel, is named for a man who struggled against God.
You are good enough. You may screw up your relationships with your friends and family. You may let them down and be embarrassed by what you’ve done. Don’t let that stop you from asking from forgiveness because you need each other.
You are good enough. You may have been let down by someone close to you. And you may have every reason in the world to hate them. Don’t hold onto that hate. Forgive them and know that when you do, they will see the face of God in you.
You are good enough.
Pray.
Nobody’s perfect. God knows this. Go to him now in prayer. Let go of your feelings of inadequacy. Let go of your past failures and regrets. Let go of your anxieties about the future. Give and seek forgiveness. And then move on.
More.
Family – A Short Film by Ransom TeeVee
