2002-01-01
Good Morning Faithful Readers,
The promise from God that He will be with you is one of the most important we can receive. Paul asked in RO 8: 31-32, “In view of all of this, what can we say? If God is for us, who can be against us? Certainly not God, Who did not keep back His only Son-will He not freely give us all things?” One of the memory verses for the Master Life course I am taking on discipleship is Christ’s words, JN 15: 7, “If you remain in Me and I in you, ask for anything you wish, and it will be given you.” In the story of David’s troubles with Saul, we saw David come out ahead time after time, because God was with him. Believe that having God with oneself is a vital perk of living up to the agreements of our covenant relationship. With us on God’s side and obeying Him, amazing things can happen-all for the good.
As we saw in yesterday’s message, Jacob in GN 28: 15 was given this all-important promise. “Remember, I will be with you and protect you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done all that I have promised you.” What God knew about Jacob is that Jacob had the right heart to be obedient and trusting of Him. What Jacob knew about God is that He could be counted on to keep His covenant promises. I think it was God who gave Jacob the knowledge that he must send his family across the Jabbok River and stay behind alone over night in GN 32: 22-23. I’m just as sure that Jacob didn’t know why. As this chapter unfolds a rather curious thing happens. A Man comes along and wrestles with Jacob until just before daybreak (24). GN 32: 25-32, “When the Man saw He was not winning the struggle, He hit Jacob on the hip, and it was thrown out of joint. The Man said, ‘Let Me go; daylight is coming.’ ‘I will not, unless You bless me,’ Jacob answered. ‘What is Your name?’ the man asked. ‘Jacob,’ he answered. The man said, ‘Your name will be Israel.’ Jacob said, ‘Now tell me Your name.’ But He answered, ‘Why do you want to know My name?’ Then He blessed Jacob. Jacob said, ‘I have seen God face-to-face, and I am still alive;’ so he named the place Peniel [which means “the face of God”]. The sun rose as Jacob was leaving Peniel, and he was limping because of his hip. Even today the descendants of Israel do not eat the muscle which is on the hip joint, because that was the muscle upon which Jacob was hit.”
Now, you might ask what does this have to do with having a covenant relationship and being protected? The answer is found in the fact that as sinners, we do struggle with God as we are making the changes He commands us to make to forward our own sanctification. If God hadn’t loved Jacob, He wouldn’t have called Jacob to be His adopted son or given him the important part in Christ’s genealogy that he held. Jacob’s name means “deceiver,” but was changed to Israel, which means “he struggles with God.” Jacob had proven himself faithful enough to have the nation of God’s chosen people named after him. How descriptive of mankind amidst the process of sanctification that is! We must remember that there would be no struggle of this sort if God didn’t love us, encourage us in the hard work of becoming perfected for eternal life with him, and didn’t want us to model the way He keeps His covenant promises. PHIL 4: 13, “I have the power to do all things through Christ Who strengthens me.” Here was Jacob with a dislocated hip, having to limp, who was given the power to father the tribes of Israel and be an integral part of the lineage of none other than Christ Himself!
If there was ever any question about God’s promise to Jacob and his descendants, note GN 35: 9-13, “When Jacob returned from Mesopotamia, God appeared to him again and blessed him. God said to him, ‘Your name is Jacob, but from now on it will be Israel.’ So God named him Israel. And God said to him, ‘I am Almighty God. Have many children. Nations will be descended from you, and you will be the ancestor of kings. I will give you the land which I give to Abraham and Isaac, and I will also give it to your descendants after you.’” After God left, Israel set up a stone memorial and consecrated it by pouring olive oil on it. He named that place Bethel, which means “house of the Lord.”
When we were baptized, we carried out this rite as an outward sign of the inward transformation God had wrought in us by the renewal of our minds [RO 12:2]. The Holy Spirit dwelt within us, a direct manifestation of God’s presence in the soul of every believer in Christ. We can take great comfort that He is with us. It is the Holy Spirit Who prompts us to make the changes in our lives that will allow God to work through us and to protect us from the buffeting of the adversary’s efforts to challenge our faith. It is that same Spirit Who convicts us of being controlled by our flesh and Who guides us to have righteous thoughts, motives, and actions. It is He Who puts God’s words in our mouths, prompts us to use our talents to serve God, and Who leads us to victory over second death. When we are faithful, we need never worry that we are alone in facing whatever evil comes our way. We are blessed to be on the winning side, just as Jacob was!
PRAYER: O Lord, as we face the evil of terrorism on the world scene today, we bow our heads in prayer for the leaders of our country and those people willing to put themselves in harm’s way for the cause of freedom and righteousness. You and You alone have the power to be with them at all times and to lead them to victory. We pray that the leaders of our country will make decisions that are in line with Your will, so that JN 15: 7 will apply to them throughout this effort. Just as You remained with Jacob, David, and all the others who had faithfully carried out Your commands, we pray that You will be with everyone involved in finding the perpetrators of the atrocities of 9-11-01 and those who harbor them. DN 4: 17 reminds us, “…The supreme God has power over human kingdoms and that He can give them to anyone He chooses-even to the least important of men.” Dearest Lord, You are both sovereign and supreme. We acknowledge Your right and ability to change the course of human history. We know that You never act with evil intent or in a way that brings eternal harm to those who love You. Jacob wrestled with You, and we struggle to follow the difficult commands that You give us which will bring us closer to You. We are Your imperfect children who one day want to be perfect. Your compassion and patience for us brings us to thankfulness. The way You protect us is unparalleled, and we place our trust in You for that. Any glory or honor that comes our way is Yours, because You made it possible. We owe You our loyalty and diligence; we offer it to You in humility. You are to be praised constantly for the great things that You accomplish. Our lives and spirits are in Your hands. Praise be to You for Who You are in our lives. In Christ’s name, amen.
Tomorrow, we will continue looking at the people who become Christ’s earthly ancestors as they deal with the challenges of their covenant relationships with God. His love for us is so great that He, through the death of His Son on the cross, paid the price to buy us out of the marketplace of slavery to sin. We must never forget that his third personality, the Holy Spirit, dwells within us as a manifestation of that love and His continual presence with us. When we allow faith in Christ to strengthen us and the Holy Spirit to fill our spiritual vessels, God can show us His love by leading us to do amazing things to forward His agenda. Such was what happened with Moses, the subject of tomorrow’s message. We can bask in the warm glow of the Father’s love and heed the wise guidance He gives. Peter and I send you our love too.
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn