The Life of Jacob part 2: New Beginnings Can Be Painful | Rev. Chad Clements

Well, today we're going to look at uh

week two of Jacob's life. And uh last

week, if you remember a bit, uh Jacob's

a bit of a a scoundrel, a bit of a an

oath. He's he's not a very nice guy in

what he uh does in light. But our big

idea today is essentially this. When we

meet God, our self-sufficiency ends with

it. And God gives us a fresh start, but

it often is painful to move into that

place of self or ending that

self-sufficiency.

Uh last week we saw where uh Jacob meets

God really for the first time and a

relationship is established and an altar

is put up and the place is called Bethl.

And it's a place where Jacob finally

stops long enough to acknowledge that

God is with him. And really that is the

beginning of a new beginning that will

come. But first, as we're going to look

at today, his life is going to continue

to be broken. And we're going to see yet

God work in that. See, it's gotten to

this point because Jacob, whose name

means suppler or cheat, has taken

everything of worth that his brother

Esau had. He takes Esau's birthright. He

takes Esau's blessing. And with that,

Esau sees red. It's his inner Rambo

comes out

and vengeance is on Esau's heart.

And then the story kind of progresses a

number of years. And at this point,

Jacob's lived 20 years with his uncle

Laben.

And if you haven't read through the rest

of the story, his life has been a little

bit difficult. There's lots of trickery

that goes on in their relationship. It

leads to two marriages and four

concubines.

And he's kind of living within this life

of trying to make everybody happy,

including his 13 children who rely on

him. And so he's working like a slave.

And he's had enough. And so he says,

"I'm going to go on the run once again."

And as he goes on the run, he takes

Laben's family and resources with him,

which were really his as well now. And

this time he's going to be caught

between a rock and a hard place. So

before him, we're going to see his

brother, Esau,

Rambo.

And behind him lays Laban. Maybe this

would be Conan the Destroyer. We got to

get the two action figures from the8s.

and Laban also doesn't like him and

wants to kill him. Where would you go?

And so as he's going along, his brother

Esau hears uh hears that his brother is

coming near to him and he gets his army

ready and he's out for blood because he

didn't

uh spill first blood, but he's going to

bring blood first.

and he has an army of 400 people that

are backing him. A and and Jacob hears

about this and he's terrified. So he

makes a plan and he gets down on his

knees and he starts to pray to God.

Basically this, I will give my brother

back all I stole. May he show me mercy.

And then God shows up. And so we're

going to be in Genesis 32 for the rest

of the morning. And we're just going to

look at this story hopefully with fresh

eyes and see what God wants to bring out

of this.

And so during the night, Jacob got up

and he took his two wives, his two

servant wives and his 11 sons and

crossed the Jabbach River with them. And

after taking them to the other side, he

sent over all his possessions. And so

this left Jacob al all alone in the

camp. And a man, we don't know the man's

name. We don't know who it is. And he

wrestled with him until the dawn began

to break. And when the man saw that he

would not win the match, he touched

Jacob's hip and wrenched it out of

socket. And so we'll just pause there

for a second before we go into the rest

of uh this scripture. And so he begins

this wrestling match with this

mysterious man. And and if anything I

could describe Jacob as is he is an

irresistible force. And yet this man who

he's going to fight is an immovable

object. And something is going to give

on both sides of the coin. And what's

going to happen is this will be both the

low point and I believe the high point

of Jacob's story. How that happens we

will see. And so it's a low point

because he receives a wound that will

plague him for the rest of his life. And

in many ways, this wound is a test to

see what he will do going forward. It's

a battle he can't win. But even battles

that we lose can teach us something or

bring great change in our lives. And the

story continues in verse 26 to 27. And

then the man said, this mysterious man,

"Let me go, for the dawn is breaking."

But Jacob said, "No way, Jose. I will

not let you go unless you bless me."

"What's your name?" the man said. He

replied, "Jacob."

Often our low points can be a gift if we

let God into them. And so here's what in

my own words he says. I will not let you

go for I am the one who grabs and holds

and manipulates.

That is who I am. But God, I want to

make a deal with you. I want to

negotiate with you because you have hurt

me and you owe me God.

You owe me God for what you have done.

So you must bless me.

But here's God who is also the unmovable

object. A and God wants Jacob to cut

through Can I say crap in church?

>> Well, the junk, the no good stuff,

whatever it is. And he asked instead,

"Well, what's your name?" Or, "Admit who

you are, Jacob. Come clean." Really what

I want from you, Jacob, in this moment

is just to be honest about who you are

and the way you've always moved in life.

Now, I've attended a lot of AA meetings

with my family.

There's just been some alcohol issues in

our life. And the first step in AA is

coming clean, admitting that you have a

problem. And the prayer goes like this.

God grant me the serenity to accept the

things I cannot change, courage to

change the things I can, and the wisdom

to know the difference.

See, Jacob can't change who he is, but

he can be honest. I am Jacob, and I'm

going to own that in this moment. I was

born that way, and I've always played

the game, and I've always cheated. is

just who I am. And I think that's a very

important moment in this story because

this low point is going to bring Jacob

to the highest of highs. And the story

continues in verse 28.

And so this mysterious man says to

Jacob, "Your name will no longer be

Jacob." Hallelujah, church.

>> Amen.

>> Because the man told him, "From now on,

you will be called Israel." So if you

want to know why Israel is named Israel,

it's because of this guy. Because you

have fought with God and with men and

you've won. So Israel in the Hebrew

language means either prevailor or

overcomer or one who wrestles with God

and overcomes, albeit with a very

painful wound.

See, our low points can be a gift. I

think if we let God in, if we say, "God,

I'm okay for you to move into this

place."

Verse 29.

And so the story continues. "So why

don't you tell me your name as well,

mysterious man?" Jacob said.

The mysterious man says, "Why do you

want to know my name?" the man replied

and then he re blessed Jacob there.

Notice he doesn't tell him his name but

he does give him an answer and he

blesses Jacob right there. Verse 30 and

Jacob named the place pineal which means

face of God for he said I have seen God

face to face church and yet my life has

been spared. And the sun was rising as

Jacob left pineal and he was limping

because of the injury to his hip.

See, when Jacob was living in this way

of life, he often would grab, he would

manipulate, and he would cheat. And I

think in many ways, it was a defense

mechanism for him in life. And in many

ways, it served him well in the

immediate, but it often brought

relational pain to him. And while he now

has a new pain, he's also going to have

a fresh start. So, Jacob's new name is

the moment in time when God says, "No

more, Jacob. You are a new person.

Repent. Turn around. Go a different path

because this path is not going to work

for you anymore." And in many ways, it's

a spiritual conversion that will be

played out later in or sorry, in later

relationships and patterns of action. Of

course, Israel is all about prevailing.

And so he asks this man, "Who are you?"

And the implications, I think, are this.

While he's converted, he believes God

now owes him. And so, even with a new

name, he resorts to old tactics to gain

control. And yet, we're told right from

the right from this story that God isn't

going to play those games with him. God

won't negotiate with Israel. Why do you

want to know who I am? And maybe that is

why in chapter 32, he still refers to

him as Jacob. As I said last week, Jesus

may be in her blood, but grandpa is

still in Jacob's bones. And it's going

to take a long time for that blood to

kind of seep in and change him to his

core.

And so while his socket is wrenched out

of place, this wound also symbolizes

this. May you, Israel, have the courage

to change what you can and the wisdom to

know the difference. May you trust me as

we move forward because I have blessed

you in this place. And so it's a fresh

start. He saw God face to face. His life

has been spared. And now God has his

back.

and the lessons of Jacob's life is a

lesson that many of us have learned the

hard way. While our past matters,

church, what God says about us is more

important. For I believe God has a new

name for you and me that fits us like a

glove. And I won't do my Jim Carrey

impression, but it fits us like a glove.

And this brings us to a couple lessons

I'd like to kind of just uh tease out

for a few moments based on this passage.

And so the first lesson I think out of

this passage is this. The beginning of

faith is where our self-sufficiency

ends. Proverbs 3:5-6 talks about how

Proverbs 3:5–6

trusting the Lord completely is where we

don't rely on our own understanding. or

2 Corinthians 1:9, Paul kind of kind of

2 Corinthians 1:9

teases it out and says we should rely on

God who raises the dead rather than

ourselves.

For Israel took him a long time to

finally stop being self-sufficient,

instead become wholly dependent on God.

His life going forward is going to be

one of overcoming, but it's going to be

one where he will prevail not because of

his abilities to cheat, but through the

love and plan of God that he had from

the very beginning, but in many ways

rejected.

For many of us, I'll speak of for myself

included, it's the exact wounds and

trauma we carry that often have us

self-medicate,

numb, or run away.

And yet when we stop doing that, we fall

to our knees in prayer and say, "God, I

can't figure this out by myself. Please

help me." Have you ever been in that

place, church?

Almost every day for me to be honest.

And this was me in one of my worst

failures. I was contemplating an end.

And I was telling God a couple years

back, I am done with ministry. I don't

want this anymore. It hurts too much. I

don't like the conflict. And on and on

and on, I tried to negotiate with God.

And then God gave me a resurrection

vision and said, "I'm not done with you

yet, Chad. Can you just trust me in the

path going forward?"

And this actually makes me think of the

Japanese art of kinugi. If you want to

put up a picture here, I don't know if

you can see that well or not.

Derek Wheeler writes this of this

Japanese art, especially in relation to

Christianity. He says, "I can't help but

marvel at how kugi, the ancient Japanese

art form of pottery repair, mirrors

Jesus and the redemptive power of the

cross. It's where we piece broken

pottery back together with gold and it

makes the final product even more

beautiful than the original. And it's

now more highly prized and more highly

desired. For Israel, it is going to be

God who will piece back together the

shattered pieces of his life. For him,

it's what some theologians call dirty

sin. The choices that he makes, poor

ones that shatter him and his family.

But for others, it's going to be the

clean sin, the tragedies that come upon

us through no fault of our own that will

break us.

But I think this injury actually forced

Israel to be reliant on God to cry out

like the blind beggar when Jesus met

him. Son, son of David, have mercy on

me, a sinner. It wasn't his own fault,

but it was still something that had

shattered his life. Our wounds are our

broken bits without God shatter us into

a thousand pieces.

Our wounds in God's hands, Paul says it

like this. I'm going to read from the

message in Romans 5, develops passionate

patience in us. And that patience in

turn for forges the tempered steel of

virtue, keeping us alert for whatever

God will do next. In alert expectancy

such as this, we're never left feeling

short short changed despite the

shattered pieces. Quite the contrary, we

can't round up enough containers to hold

everything God generously pours into our

lives through the Holy Spirit. Romans 5

3-4. And of course, Jesus, who is our

model, shows us what depends on God is

like. He's at the cross and he's broken

and he's wanting and he says in a cry of

expectancy, "My God, my God, why have

you forsaken me?" Which ultimately

points to God's faithfulness and ability

to deliver him. And this actually

highlights his human suffering and

feeling of separation. The same God who

bore the sin of the world while still

crying out in faith, "It's finished.

who finally says to his father just

before he dies, "Father, into your

hands, I commit my spirit."

And this signifies his voluntary choice

to die, completing his redemptive

mission and trusting himself to God the

Father. Really, that's a powerful moment

demonstrating his sovereignty over

death. And it's a model for us in our

own brokenness and struggles.

As for Jacob, he remains persistent.

He learns how to face God face to face,

person to person. He learns how to trust

God with all his broken bits. He learns

how to rely on God because he may have

been born Jacob, but his reliance on God

brings him a new name.

And for many of us, whether we were born

into the faith or were converted into

it, we all face this test.

Who will I be?

Who will I depend on? Will I depend on

myself? Or will I depend on God who is

much stronger and more wise than me?

Will I trust my skills and cleverness

and hard work, my intelligence and

possessions and prestige, my knowhow and

achievements? Will that be what defines

me? Those things aren't bad in of

themselves, but will that define me or

will God define me?

Commentator John Walt Walton writes this

of this story. At the right time, the

right circumstance,

God pressed Jacob for more.

God confronts Jacob with who he is and

says, "I don't want you to stay that way

because I have something better for you,

more beautiful for you." As for God and

us, I think he will often confront each

of us with some sort of crisis to get

our attention so that he would help us

see ourselves for who we really are.

And who we really are is who God says we

are.

That's why that brings us to our second

lesson very quickly. I believe our

second lesson is this. God calls us to

accept our new name. To accept what he

says about us. Scriptures say these

things that God says about us.

Maybe you're friends. I have called you

friends. Maybe your new name is chosen.

You are chosen by God to be his people.

You're not a pile of trash, church.

You're valuable to God. Very valuable.

Enough to die for. Enough to send the

Holy Spirit to live in you. Maybe the

name that you and I need to live under

is forgiven. You are cleansed and

forgiven through confession. Maybe the

name that you and I need to live under

is child of God. You are given the right

to become children of God. In fact, one

of my most powerful healing moments with

God is he helped me to see myself as a

little child, skipping rocks, sailing on

a boat with him, sitting on his lap. And

it was a healing moment for me because I

saw God saw me for who I was and showed

me who I was. Maybe it's that we need to

live under this new name of loved and

favored. God has lavished his love and

favor upon you. Or maybe it's conqueror.

To the one who conquers, a new name will

be given. And we have conquered through

Jesus Christ. Or maybe it's masterpiece.

For we are God's masterpiece. You are

God's masterpiece. He has created us a

new in Christ uh Jesus.

See, Jacob's new name, Israel,

is going to allow him to overcome lots

of his past and through God help him to

overcome issues in the present and the

future. There's going to still be family

conflict, still family problems.

There's going to be a fam that's going

to pop up. He's going to think he lost a

son, but his new name is his blessing.

God with him to help him overcome

whatever life throws at him.

Pastor uh Sam Storm says this. There is

an identity that you have in God

reflected in your new name that

transcends whatever shame, regret, or

disappointment is wrapped up in who you

are right now. There is a very private

and personal place of intimacy with him

that brings hope and freedom and joy

that none can touch or taint or steal

away.

For we are more than conquerors through

him who overcame death and our sin

through him who loves us. A new name is

coming, church, and it's better than

whatever name you dreamed of having as a

child.

It is one is from the one who has a name

above all other names. And I believe

he's excited to reveal it to you and me.

Amen, church. Amen.