Cody Perrin

Genesis 32 has always been a passage that has caught my eye. I know that many Christians (I especially being one) have felt as if they have been in situations that resemble a “wrestling” with God. Few, however, can compare their wrestlings with the physical exertion and exhaustion that Jacob endured that night. The passage itself provides a powerful lesson to the periods of our lives where we feel we are wrestling with God. Now, many argue whether the “man” that Jacob wrestled with was either God or an angel. I don’t know. I lean towards God, but the application nonetheless remains the same. 

I. What placed Jacob into a situation where he wrestled with God? 

        Above and beyond anything, the struggle Jacob faced was a struggle to keep his identity. Throughout his life, Jacob’s wit and cunningness caused him to deceive many people. This resulted in taking of Esau’s birthright, receiving the blessing of Isaac, and the culmination of not only two wives, but also most of Laban’s positions. Even amongst this deceit, it seems that in almost everything that Jacob did, he was blessed. Through this, one can see how each step of deceit that Jacob took, served as a building block to fuel the flame of Jacob’s prideful identity. It is easy to see how Jacob could have esteemed all his blessings to his own cunningness. Little did he know, he could not sin his way out of the blessings of the most high God. This all came to a halt, however, when Jacob returned home and feared that his brother Esau would kill him. These circumstances caused a lapse in judgement that shoved Jacob into his wrestlings. Two things should be noted:

        A. Jacob’s lack of faith in the promises of God led him to wrestle with God. There are three signs in chapter 32 alone that should have comforted Jacob:

• God sent angles to meet Jacob and accompany him on his safe journey (32:1)
• God commanded Jacob to return to his country so that he could bless him (32:9)
• God promised Jacob an incomprehensible blessing (32:12)

     B. Jacob’s life was built on his identity, this led him to fear for his own life

• “Please deliver me from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau, for I fear him, that he may come and attack me, the mothers and the children.” Jacob feared for the possessions that the Lord alone blessed him with.

II. The Wrestling

A. Jacob’s State- Jacob was left alone (32:4), leaving him both vulnerable and acceptable to the wrestle match with God. This removed any type of comfort that his family or his possessions provided him with. God never wrestles with those who cannot put all of their attention on the match. There is no way to wrestle with God when the distractions of life are all around us.

B. The duration of the struggle-Jacob wrestled the whole night (32:4b). This wasn’t a short match. Jacob’s identity was on the line. It should be noted that a person cannot wrestle with God if they are simply looking for a quick fix. 

C. Jacob’s Opponent- Jacob’s opponent held the outcome of the match the entire time. A couple of things should be noted here:

• God alone determined when the wrestling match would end (32:25). 
• God’s ability to end the match showed his superior strength and his knowledge of Jacob’s weakness
• God would not have ever let Jacob win. The ease with which the match was ended showed that the longevity of the match was a simple tactic to keep Jacob at bay. God doesn’t wrestle with people that will throw in the towel right away. Likewise, God will not prevail, let alone start a match against us until it is proven that we are willing to wrestle long enough. Verse 25 says, “When the man saw that he did not prevail against Jacob…” Jacob’s willingness to wrestle allowed him to be broken and blessed the way he was. 

III. The Result: All these were the result of Jacob’s match with God

• If one wrestles with God long enough, they will be broken
• However, if one clings to God in their brokenness, they will be blessed. Just as Jacob clung to his identity of deceit and worldly possessions that originally got him into the wrestling match, so he too fervently clung to the man he wrestled with once he was broken. Why did Jacob cling to his opponent? Jacob realized the superior, and staked his life upon his opponent’s blessing.  
• God breaks his people with the intention of blessing them
• Jacob received the blessing of a new identity. It seems as if for the first time, the God of Isaac and Abraham finally became the God of Jacob. God was no longer the family God, just as clearly as Abraham saw God, so too, Jacob’s eyes were open to the reality of Him. 

The Christian walk is always an interesting ascend. My hope is that a long ascension is never simultaneously a long decline. I never want the facade of improvement or progress to eventually be revealed as a period of complacency or degeneration. The difficult part, however, is figuring out how to avert this state. Colossians 2:6 states, ”Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him.” I received Christ through grace and faith. While theology, practicality and doctrine might have been a little blurry, the things that were clear were: one name- Jesus Christ; one book- The Bible. As my walk has continued, however, utter dependence upon God has been easily replaced by a sense of independence. The breath of God which allowed my dry bones to come alive has often been replaced by a sense of self-existence. The remedy against this state is to walk in Christ the way we received Him.

I have thought about three aspects of my receiving of Christ that must be applied to my walk if my continual ascension is not one of decline.

1. Grace and Faith: We are all saved by both. Ephesians 2:8, “For it is by grace you have been saved through faith, not a result of works.” The grace and faith that received Christ with such dependency needs to be present in one’s current walk with the Lord. One can look upon their past salvation with praise, however, must look to the present or future understanding that the past graces of God only point to future graces. These future graces are embraced through faith. As G.K. Chesterson says, “The man who has thus praised progress does not think it necessary to progress any further.” Any reflecting on our progress must not be an end, but a means to further progress. 

2. A Reliance on the Holy Spirit: The Holy Spirit opened my eyes to the things of Christ. Therefore, every morning, every evening, every hour and second I need to utterly rely on the Spirit to open my eyes to the things of the Father. I need the Spirit to break my heart from what breaks the heart of the Father. 

3. A Position of Effective Reliance: 2 Corinthians 4:6 says, “For God, who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” I received Christ through a command that created what it called for. When Christ commanded, “Lazarus, come forth!” The command to come created the actually coming. Just as God the Father in Genesis stated,” Let there be light,” and light was created, so he spoke those words over the darkness of my heart, and light immediately shone. Just as he told Lazarus to rise from the death that swallowed him, so my soul was commanded and awakened amidst my utter depravity. So, just as I received Christ in this way, I need to position myself (BY GRACE, FAITH and the SPIRIT) in a way where I can hear the effectual commands of God. I want neither a lack of faith nor a reliance upon self which prevents me from being effected and transformed by the power, grace and love of the Divine. 

Therefore, we all need to walk in Christ in the way we have received him.

What is the purpose of the universe? Ephesians 1:5 and 6 says, “In love he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace.” I believe that the purpose of the universe is the glory of God. This leads to the question, is Christ the means to this end, or is/was he the end itself? The first way to answer the question is that Christ is/was the end. Christ is the fullest manifestation of the glory of God. He ALWAYS will be. Ephesians 1:6 shows that the fullest manifestation of the glory of God is the glory of God’s grace. The fullest manifestation of the glory of God’s grace climaxes at the cross of Christ. The whole universe existed for that moment when Christ hung on the cross and declared, “It is finished.” That moment is what is and will the praise of God’s people FOREVER. We will never get past it. So yes, Christ fulfilled the end purpose of the universe. BUT, he is also the means. Something had to happen to sinful humanity in order for us to praise God. Our sins had to be forgiven, our unrighteousness had to be exchanged for the righteousness of Christ. Christ’s sacrifice became the means by which we could worship and adore Him. Therefore, by becoming the means, He became the end. By enabling us to worship Him, He Himself became the object of our worship for eternity. We will never get past the blood of Christ. That is what will be our praise forever and forever. O praise the One who paid my debt and raised this life up from the dead!