Genesis 32

Genesis Chapter 32

And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day. 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. And he said, Let me go, for the day breaketh. And he said, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me. And he said unto him, What is thy name? And he said, Jacob. 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. And Jacob asked him, and said, Tell me, I pray thee, thy name. And he said, Wherefore is it that thou dost ask after my name? And he blessed him there. And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved. And as he passed over Penuel the sun rose upon him, and he halted upon his thigh.
(Gen 32:24-31)

Wrestling with God. Just think about that phrase for a moment if you will. Wrestling with God. When I think about it, I can’t help but ask myself, “who in the world would want to wrestle with GOD?!” As crazy as that may seem this is where we find Jacob today. He is wrestling with God. In fact, he has been wrestling with God in a figurative sense for YEARS! This struggle between God’s way and Jacob’s way, between making things happen in the flesh and simply following the leading of God’s Spirit, is a divine wrestling match we have all engaged in from time to time.

Now look at the verses above… things change rapidly for Jacob. One second he is dead locked in a struggle with the Lord, fighting to do things HIS WAY. Then the Lord simply touched him, and everything changed. In a moment he goes from fighting with God to clinging to God. He says, “don’t leave me, I need Your blessing in my life.” How quickly the tune he was singing had changed. From, “let me do it my way, don’t stop me!” to “Oh Lord, Please help me!”

Now, as a result of this divine wrestling match 2 things in Jacob’s life were forever changed.

Jacob’s name was changed. – We have talked about this before, in Bible times a man’s named described who he was. Here we see Jacob (the dirty-rotten-sneaky-thief) turned into Israel (a man governed by God). From this moment forward, everything was different. No longer would he struggle in a deadlock with the Lord, the conniver had become a servant of the Lord. He was no longer “his own man” but was now a man doing the will of His master. A real encounter with the Lord will always change a man. Maybe you are a person who fights against the authority in their life, you struggle against parents, teachers, even the Lord. You want to do things your own way. You want to do what YOU want to do. The Lord can change you, and He can do it one of 2 ways. You can submit to Him, and ask Him to do it. Or you can fight against him, and have him do whatever it takes to bring you to submission. The Bible tells us that one day “every knee will bow”. Every person on this earth will one day fall before God. Will you do it willingly now, or wait until it is to late?

Jacob’s walk was changed. – After his encounter with the Lord, Jacob’s walk was different. “he halted upon his thigh”. Jacob limped for the rest of his life. This has signifigance in a couple of ways: Whenever a man truly encounters the Lord, his “walk” is forever changed. No longer the tall proud saunter of a man doing it HIS OWN WAY. Now the humble limp of a man who KNOWS he must depend on the Lord. The other thing this did was provide a constant reminder for Jacob of just who it was that was really in control. That limp was always with him, he would never forget what the lord had done to change him... Have you really met the Lord and had him forever change the way you live? What has He put in your life to remind you of your need to trust Him and Him alone?