The Great Contender

I ask for God's blessing on our time.

Would you pray with me?

Father, thank you that you draw near to us in your word

to reveal to us, Jesus.

We pray by your spirit's presence

that for each of us,

there would be a fresh insight.

There would be a particular encounter.

Lord, there would be a moment

where we are more aware of your grace and mercy

given to us in Christ

than anything you are calling us to do.

Thank you, Lord, for the blessing of this gathering,

for what you're doing in and amongst

the people of Trinity Cambridge,

for your glory and the good of this community.

Join us now for Jesus' glory.

We pray this in his name.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Well, that was a gracious introduction by Sean.

And thank you, brother, for those kind words.

I do wish that my wife, Linda, could be here.

She is with our church in Franklin, Massachusetts,

a sister church of yours.

And you'll hear about her later in the message.

But she sends her regards to you,

and as does our congregation.

I actually discovered that two of our members are here

celebrating their anniversary.

So I hope you'll get to know them, Tina and Mike Chang,

who can you just wave at the...

That's great.

I feel bad that they have to sit and listen to me,

having heard this message,

and would be eager for them to come again

so they can be ministered to by your lead pastor.

But happy anniversary to the Changs.

Real quick, when Sean comes to our church,

we always ask for a Trinity update.

So I'm assuming he would want me to give you,

in two minutes, a Crossway Church update.

We're celebrating our 16th year,

the beginning of our sixth in Franklin.

We started in a small community called Mansfield.

We were planted through Sovereign Grace Churches

back in 2001.

This past summer's been quite full for us as a congregation.

We attempted to do three things

in the course of about six weeks.

The first of which you may have heard of

was the celebration event in Lancaster, PA.

We had several families and singles participate in that,

which was a conference principally sponsored

by Sovereign Grace Churches in the Northeast,

but there were others who joined us.

That was immediately followed by a week of serving

and loving a community in East Providence,

a subset of Providence.

There's a new church work there called Godspeed,

and we've been working with them,

and they've been partnering with us for years,

and they recently moved into that community.

And so it's a ministry among the urban poor,

and we're joining them because our desire

is in a couple of years to plant a church

into another suburb of Providence, Pawtucket,

and learn not only the rhythms of life there

and meet the people,

but partner with churches in our region

for the sake of the gospel.

So we did that for a week.

Tina and her daughters were part of that,

and I believe they were part of the celebration too.

And then last week we had youth camp

with friends in Pennsylvania and Maryland.

And I don't know if you've ever been to a youth camp.

At 54 years old, a youth camp means no sleep,

radical change to your diet,

high energy activities all day,

and then when you return home,

about three days of foggy brain.

So I'm somewhere in that three day of foggy brain.

But glad to be here with you.

Thankful that we are partnering in our mission together

and thankful that you are a part of this community

as we are a part of our community

seeking to love our neighbors

and through our love point them to Christ our Savior.

It's a privilege to be here.

Our church, I believe,

our youth group was here with you earlier this year.

One of those was my daughter,

and so I'm glad now to see the Lusitania

with my own eyes with you in it.

How many of you, as we turn our attention to the text,

how many of you this summer

have been to either a show or a concert

or even seen a movie this summer?

Just shut by way of hands.

Great.

Then you can identify with this illustration

as we think about our passage this morning.

Where you sit when you attend Shakespeare on the Common

in downtown Boston

or watch Dunkirk, the movie,

if you take it in a theater,

or in my case, the U2 concert at Gillette,

where you sit shapes your experience

and perspective of what you see, doesn't it?

So where I sat at U2 was the only place

I could afford to sit,

which was the standing room-only free space,

which if you've been to Gillette Stadium,

you know that as you come from the upper level

to the lower level,

below the restaurant CBS scene,

there are some stairs there,

and there's a courtyard,

and they allow you for every concert,

whether it was Coldplay on Friday night

or U2 back in June,

to stand there,

and then when the concert begins

and they clear away the security,

they actually allow you to move all the way up

to where the fake lighthouse is

and the bridge,

and you can have a clear sight view

of the band performing.

What I didn't realize is,

though it was a great concert

because it was free,

is that I had friends,

actually church-planning friends,

who were in the cheap seats,

the nosebleed seats.

They were inside but up high,

and I could tell

because as I was tweeting out

during the concert,

excerpts from,

they were seeing my tweets

and texting me back,

where are you sitting?

I'm in the cheap, free spot.

Oh, we're up high.

And they had the panoramic view,

you know,

where everyone does their thing

with their cameras and their lights

and so there.

And then before the concert was over,

I realized that we had acquaintances

that were about 30 feet

from the front of the stage

in the general admission,

and so they let me know

at the end of the show

that they actually were in there.

They didn't want to see me

since they had paid so much

for their seats,

but they were,

and you know what I realized

in that moment?

I realized in that moment

that where you are

during a concert

or an event

shapes your perspective.

The book of Genesis

is a lot like that,

isn't it?

We are given

in the book of Genesis

chapters that cover

years,

maybe even decades

in the life of a character,

and so we get more

of the nosebleed

or the panoramic view

of the story

for God's purposes,

but this morning

we're in the general admission.

We're 30 feet

from the stage

because the narrative

slows down,

and God by his spirit

through this inspired word

brings us up close

into literally

a few hours

of Jacob's life,

pivotal hours,

so that we don't miss

the details

of this particular moment.

Why that's encouraging to me

as not only are you learning

how to read the scriptures,

it'll still encourage to me

how God relates to us.

In Christ,

God has brought you

and I

in close to him

so we don't miss

a single detail

of what he's like,

but if you're like me,

oftentimes in our relationship

with God,

we feel

as if God is far away,

and we're up

in the cheap seats

looking down,

and we know God's at work,

we don't quite understand

what he's doing

in the details

of our life,

or we can even feel

that we're outside

looking in,

but the good news is

that this passage

reminds us

is wherever we feel

we're sitting,

God draws near to us.

He continues to search

and seek

and find us

because of his great love,

which invites us

as we consider

the life of Jacob

this morning

to entrust ourselves

to God again

because of his

gracious promises

which are unfailing,

and that's the main point

this morning.

Wherever you find yourself

this morning,

wherever you are

in your understanding

of the scriptures,

your exploration

of Christianity,

your understanding

of the gospel,

perhaps you're new

to this church

or new to the faith,

the good news

of Genesis 32 and 33

is we can entrust

ourselves to God

because his gracious

promises to us

are filling,

but that's also true

for us who have been

walking with him

for a long time.

We need to be reminded,

we need to be renewed

in our hope

that we can

entrust ourselves

to God

because of his

gracious

and unfailing

promises to us.

This is a great

Old Testament chapter.

It's great

because not only

does the narrator

slow down

in order to help us

focus on Jacob's

remarkable transformation

as he returns

to Canaan,

confronts his fears,

and wrestles with God

in preparation

for his unexpected

and surprising

reconciliation

to his brother Esau,

but it's a great chapter

because of what it

reminds us

of Christ

and his purposes

and plans

for our lives.

I'm breaking down,

I'm going to limit

my comments

to chapter 32

and the structure

of the passage.

We're going to look

at three sections

this morning.

The first section,

the opening section,

verses 1 and 2,

Jacob's mounting fears

and reassurance

of faith.

And then the second section,

which we'll get to

in a moment,

beginning in verse 22,

Jacob's mortal

combat with the

mysterious figure

and then his memorable

reconciliation

with Esau at the end.

Let's look at the first section,

verses 1 and 2,

Jacob's mounting fears

and reassurance

of faith.

Let's look again

at what is recorded here.

Jacob went on his way.

The angels of God

met him

and when Jacob saw them,

he said,

this is God's camp.

So he called

the name

of the place

Mahanam.

The chapter opens

with the sudden visitation

of many angels.

These mighty

messengers of God,

Jacob exclaims,

are camping

near his camp.

So did you notice

that as Jacob

departed the land

with a vision

of angels,

he now reenters

the land

accompanied by

a host of angels.

In the story

of Jacob,

when he left

as a fugitive,

having stolen

his brother's birthright,

he left Canaan

with a vision

or dream of angels.

Now he reenters

the land

and he is

accompanied by

a host of angels.

And it begs the question,

I'm sure you asked

this question,

why?

Why do these

angels,

these mighty

messengers of God,

suddenly reappear

to the patriarch?

And I think,

I submit for your

consideration,

the abrupt

appearance

of not just

the angels,

but what does

Jacob call it?

Look down at your camp.

Look down at your text.

The camp

of God.

The abrupt

appearance

of these mighty

messengers,

the camp of God,

is because

God wants

to reassure

Jacob

of his presence.

When our fears

are mounting,

God wants

to reassure

us

of his

presence

too.

Turn back

to Genesis 28.

Just look briefly

at verse 12

with me.

Jacob

has a dream.

the twisted

one,

the manipulator,

the one who

steals

from his

brother

and lies

to his

father

to get

what he wants,

now is a fugitive

fleeing his

brother Esau's

murderous plans

and he has a

dream.

And what does

he see in the

dream?

He sees

angels

ascending

and descending

on the ladder

into heaven,

God's throne

room.

Now,

in this

chapter,

chapter 32,

God gives

him a second

vision of

angels.

But this

is on his

return

into the

promised land.

Why is

God

doing

this?

What does

it trigger

perhaps in

Jacob's

memory

as God

do this?

Besides his

awe of the

presence of

these mighty

angels,

God is

reminding

Jacob

that he

is not

alone.

God

is not

this is

the

reminder

through

his

presence

of the

promises

God

made

to

Jacob

when

he

left.

the

Lord

Why should

that

be

important

to you?

Why is

that

important

to

Israel

too

who

originally

received

the

story?

Why should

that be

important

to us

at Trinity

Cambridge?

is because God never forgets his promises to us,

even when we do.

He never forgets his promises.

But he often has to remind us of his promises

because we often forget his promises,

even those promises found his word.

Now, think about it.

If your friend made you a promise

that was particularly meaningful and important to you,

would you forget it?

Probably not.

If you're married

and your spouse makes a promise to you

that's important to you,

do we forget it?

Never.

If your employer makes a promise to you

at the end of this year,

I promise you,

do we forget that?

Not on our lives,

but I often forget

the very promises God has made to me

and keeps in Christ.

This chapter reminds me

that even when I forget God's promises,

he remains faithful to keep them

and he will often remind me of them,

often in the context of God's gathered community,

but every day that I look to him

for reassurance of his grace.

No more do we need this

than when fears are mounting

and decisions are looming

and conflicts are impending

as was all facing Jacob.

What is the purpose of this vision for Jacob?

The purpose of this section

is to help Jacob

think about God's word to him in the past,

remember his word of promise in the presence,

and reassure him of his presence

so that he can be confident

that as he pursues reconciliation with Esau,

God is helping him too.

Friend, here's a question

for purposeful reflection application.

What promise might God be helping you

to remember this week

as you obey him in the daily moments of life?

If you're not sure,

may I urge you to consider

your order of service,

which contains many promises

from God's word

of his forgiveness,

of his presence,

of his provision,

and ultimately of his blessing

given to us in Christ.

God never forgets his promises.

Indeed, he often providentially reminds us of them

so that we might not forget.

That's part one.

Part two, as we transition.

Encouraged by the vision of the angels,

Jacob now decides to do a hard thing first

to a matter that has been increasingly heavy

on his heart for 20 years.

He decides to come back to Canaan

to pursue reconciliation with his brother

after his terrible mistreatment of him

and their broken relationship.

Look again at verse 3.

Chapter 32.

And Jacob sent messengers before him

to Esau, his brother,

in the land of Seir,

the country of Edom,

instructing them,

Thus you shall say to my lord Esau,

Thus says your servant Jacob,

I have sojourned with Laban

and stayed until now.

I have oxen, donkeys, flocks,

male servants and female servants.

I have sent to tell my lord

in order that I may find favor

in your sight.

It's interesting as we look at this next section

that Esau does not block

Jacob's return trip into Canaan.

He had settled far to the south

at Mount Seir in Edom,

but apparently it was a spiritual necessity

for Jacob for making things right

with his brother

that drove Jacob

to journey south first

to where Esau was

for Canaan lies to the west.

In support of this,

Derek Kidner,

a wonderful Old Testament commentator,

observes that the sequence

of chapters 32 and 33,

which culminates in chapter 35,

powerfully acts out the principles

of spiritual reconciliation

outlined in the New Testament.

But did you notice

Jacob's faith in God

is tested

as he begins his journey home?

Not by wild animals

that crouch at the border,

nor by raiding nomadic tribes

that threaten to kill him

as an unwelcome visitor.

Jacob's faith is tested

by those noisemakers

that reside within our hearts too.

Fear.

The voice of fear.

And the reason it's often

a test of our faith

is because the voice of fear

is our own.

It's our own voice.

The thing about fear in my life,

it's not only that it's a familiar voice,

but fear, as people have often noted,

never travels alone.

It's a pack animal.

And it always gathers friends.

Friends like good desires that I have

that now feel threatened

by this course of action

or this indication by God

to do something,

which then makes the fear

a test of my faith

in God's faithfulness

and his call to my obedience.

But notice how Jacob responds.

Jacob responds to his fears

with a peaceful gesture to Esau.

He sends to his brother

donkeys and oxen and flocks

and male servants and female servants,

verse 5,

so that he would find favor

in his sight.

He sends messengers with gifts

and he sends them

with a message of peace.

The message Jacob tells his messengers

to share with Esau

speak of how God has blessed him

with so many things

while serving Laban and Paranarum.

Jacob is not trying to aggravate

or tweak Esau here.

He's basically saying to his brother,

I am a very wealthy man.

I don't need anything of yours.

I don't want to take anything of yours.

I'm not going to trick you

out of anything that is yours.

You can have everything that's yours

because I don't need it

because God has prospered me.

Jacob, I seek nothing that belongs to you

except your face.

Wow!

Has Jacob changed from 20 years before?

The twister, the manipulator,

the liar, the cheater, the schemer.

The thief now returns to Jacob

and wants to make peace.

Did you notice how he addresses his brother?

He addresses his brother as Lord.

Verse 5,

I have sent to tell my Lord.

These words may indicate Jacob's repentance

for stealing his older brother's blessing.

And so now he wants to honor Esau,

his older brother,

not only with gifts,

but with deference and respect.

But verse 6 tells us

that the report of the messengers

is disturbing.

When we came to your brother Esau,

he's coming now to meet you

and there are 400 men with him.

That would not indicate

that they had been able to convey successfully

Jacob's overture to Esau.

So Jacob, verse 7,

is filled with great distress.

It would distress me

if I hadn't seen him for 20 years

only to hear the news

that he's coming to me

with an army of 400 men.

Oh my.

Let's pause for a moment

and consider this.

God is at work in Jacob's life.

And of course,

that of Israel's

who first received the story

about the end of the promised land

to strengthen their faith

and renew their obedience in him.

First,

he does so by reminding us

that God often strengthens our faith

not by removing all danger

and pressure from our lives,

but by sustaining us through it.

God strengthens our faith

not by removing our trials,

but by upholding us through them.

Now let me just make a pause.

This is a...

We just spent a week

at youth camp in Daniel.

So I'm going to use this

as an illustration.

It is true

that God doesn't remove us

from all of our trials

and temptations,

but to strengthen our faith.

But did you notice

when those of you

that have read the book of Daniel

that when we get to chapter 3

and the famous story

of his three companions

who were thrown

into the fiery furnace

for not bowing to the idols,

what it says of Daniel

right before that chapter?

Daniel's doing the king's work.

He's on an assignment

and Daniel is spared

the trial of the fiery furnace

at the end of chapter 2.

And as I read that

and then read of the...

really the remarkable courage

and faith of the three

that were thrown

into the fiery furnace

and stood faithful to God,

I had this thought.

How many fiery afflictions

has God spared me

that I'm unaware of?

And how often do I just simply pause

and say,

Lord, thank you,

notwithstanding the fiery trial I'm in

for the many ways

you have spared me

or shown mercy to me

or been uncommonly kind to me,

which then brings perspective

and hope to the trial

and fears that I now face.

So when I say to you,

God often strengthens our faith

not by removing us

from all danger and pressure.

I don't want to imply by that

that the Christian life

is just one trial of our faith.

There are many, many stops

along the way

where we can simply pause

and say,

thank you, Lord,

for your faithfulness

in providing and protecting

and delivering me.

But he does not remove us

from all of our trials.

So it took Jacob

enormous courage

to return to his homeland

and continue to seek out Esau.

And so here's a final application point.

Spiritual courage

from our faith

is not found merely by God

removing all danger from our lives,

but by faith facing our fears,

obeying God's word,

and through God's blessing

growing in our faith

and dependency in Christ.

Friend,

where might God

be testing your faith today?

Where might God be testing

the corporate faith

of Trinity Cambridge Church?

Where might God be testing

and proving the faith

of Crossway Church

or even the broader body of Christ

in this city or this region?

It's not by removing every danger

or difficulty from our life,

but by helping us face it

in order to deepen our faith

and our courage

through Christ this week.

How might God be encouraging you

to respond?

God strengthens our faith,

not by removing all danger

and pressure,

but by sustaining us through it.

Which begs the question,

how does God sustain Jacob through it?

How did God do it?

And what would God have to teach Israel

through it?

And what did God,

by implication,

teach us?

Verse 9,

Jacob's first recorded prayer

in all of Scripture.

One of the ways

Jacob is sustained

and finds the spiritual courage

necessary to face his brother Esau

is Jacob is learning how to pray.

Verse 9,

let's look at it again.

O God of my father,

Abraham,

and God of my father,

Isaac.

Notice he addresses God

by his covenant name.

O Lord,

L capital O capital R capital T,

O Yahweh,

who said to me,

return to your country

and to your kindred

that I may do you good.

I am not worthy

of the least of all the deeds

of steadfast love

and of faithfulness

that you have shown

to your servant,

for with only my staff

I cross this Jordan.

And now I have become two camps.

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 with the children.

But you said,

I will surely do you good

and make your offspring

as the sand of the sea,

which cannot be numbered

for the multitude.

What a prayer.

What a prayer.

prayer.

Jacob provides Israel

with a model prayer.

Jacob provides us

with a model prayer.

But here's what's interesting

why this encourages me.

It's not a model prayer.

This is Jacob's first recorded prayer

in Scripture,

meaning much of his life

that has been walked out with God

has not enlisted

the grace reserved for prayer.

But he is learning.

God in his mercy and grace

is teaching him.

Even at this late juncture

in this significant moment,

God is helping him

to express his need.

But notice,

not only does he express his need,

he contemplates God's promises

while he prays.

Verse 12.

He bases his entire prayer

on the covenant promises

God has already given to him.

You know, it's interesting.

Jacob's phrase here in verse 12

borrows both from what God said to him

in Genesis 28,

but also from Genesis 22.

And so conceivably,

the language here of these prayers

is not just what God

has personally spoken to Jacob,

which he has,

but he is reciting the promises

God gave to his ancestor Abraham.

As if to say,

God's promises are unfailing.

And therefore,

my faith,

listen,

is in God's word

and not my ability

to be faithful.

Let me say this again.

His model prayer

reminds me,

reminds,

is reminds us,

is our faith

has a sure

and lasting hope.

It's in God's word

and God's promises

and not in our faithfulness.

Why will Trinity Cambridge

prosper in the biblical sense

of that word?

He will use our efforts.

He will be faithful

to our sacrifices.

He will,

he hears our prayers,

but ultimately,

he will be faithful

to Trinity Cambridge Church

in East Cambridge

as he is faithful

to every Bible-believing,

gospel-believing church

in this city

and in this region

and in this nation.

not because of our faithfulness.

He will be faithful

because he is faithful

to his promises.

God's word

is a sure foundation.

And so Jacob

is pleading God's promises

as he prays.

Friend,

can you help me?

And can we help one another

in the situations

or difficulties we face?

not only to turn

to the Lord

in prayer this week,

but to remember,

remember specific promises

that help us

put our trust in God's love

and faithfulness

and promises to you.

Let me give you one

and we'll turn for home,

Sean,

to close this out.

Psalm 9.

Turn with me to Psalm 9.

It's a simple verse

from Psalm 9.

And I need simple

at 54 to remember

scripture.

These people who memorize

the book of Hebrews

and recite them

at conferences,

I have nothing in common

with them.

I can't remember

my birthday

and my pin numbers anymore

or how old I am.

But I can remember this.

Psalm 9,

Psalms 9:9

verse 9 and 10.

The Lord is a stronghold

for the oppressed,

a stronghold

in times of trouble.

And those who know your name

put their trust in you.

For you, O Lord,

have not forsaken

those who seek you.

What a promise.

Those who know your name,

those who know Jesus,

those who by grace and mercy

God in His kindness

has opened our eyes

to not only believe in Him

but receive from Him

His precious promises

of forgiveness

and salvation

and comfort

and an abiding presence.

Those who know your name

not only put their trust in you,

but when we seek first

your kingdom

and its righteousness,

what's the promise?

He does not forsake us.

Wow.

Wow.

That simple promise

becomes the fuel

for our intercession

when fears are mounting

and difficulties are real

and the report of our messengers

is disturbing.

Friend, where might God

be desiring to strengthen

your faith this week

in courage?

Not by removing danger,

but by having you

simply remember

and recite

and reflect on

God's promises

in His Word

while you pray.

Plead the promise

while you pray

because He is faithful.

Let's conclude

the passage

with His Mortal Kombat

22 to 32.

What a stunning

turn of events.

What a surprising

reversal

as God

deals first

with Jacob

before Jacob

has to deal

with Esau.

It would probably

be one of the

darkest nights

of Jacob's life

as he sat alone

reflecting on his past.

He sent everyone

ahead of him

across the brook

and as he sits there,

have you ever had

one of those

sleepless nights

where your thoughts

are racing

and you're considering

what tomorrow

might bring?

Jacob has an

unexpected,

unplanned

visit by this

mystery figure

and the effect

and my final point

is of this

encounter

is that God

grows

Jacob's

faith

by transforming

his

weakness

into his

greatest

strength.

He

now

limps.

That becomes

his strength,

his asset,

his spiritual

gifting.

He now

will

limp.

It's a

crippling

combat.

I don't know

what to compare

it to.

I don't do

boxing.

I never

wrestled.

I played

tennis.

I mean,

they're

wrestling

and sweating

and gouging

and pulling

and butting

heads

and I

think there's

bleeding going

on and

there's no

tap out

and all

Jacob could

do was

cling on

to this

angelic

mystery

figure

or lose

the battle

and he's

not even

sure who

it is

he's wrestling

with.

It's dark.

It's not

like he can

whip out

his phone

and flip

on his

flashlight

and put

it in

the things

fit.

Oh,

this is

the angel

Lord.

Oh,

this is

the pre-incarnate

Christ.

Oh,

this is

a theophany

or all

things we

do to

make sense

of it.

But Hosea

Hosea 12 · chapter mention

chapter 12

tells us

Jacob strove

with the

angel.

Jacob was

wrestling

with God

and God's

purposes

as he always

struggled

with God

and God's

purposes.

And yet

what he

had no

idea was

that the

figure was

not there

to punish

Jacob.

He was

not there

to condemn

him.

He was

in the

grip.

I love

this language

that Ian

DeGuit

has given

us of

God's

relentless

grace.

In verse

25 it

says,

when the

man saw

that he

did not

prevail against

Jacob,

he touched

his hip

socket and

Jacob's hip

was put out

of joint

as he

wrestled

with him.

In other

words,

Jacob for

the rest

of his

life was

reduced to

weakness.

His injured

leg useless

and dangling.

But,

here's amazing

grace,

though physically

weak,

by faith

he hung

on,

didn't he?

Till God

blessed him.

Jacob

wrestled

with the

angel.

He is

reduced

to a

limp,

but he

hangs

on to

receive

blessing.

And the

blessing comes

in two

forms.

He receives

a new

name,

where we're

told that

you will no

longer be

called

Jacob,

but you

will be

called

Israel,

God's name

for his

covenant

partner and

for his

chosen

people.

But also,

there will be

a memorial

that will be

established of

this event,

which will

remind his

descendants

of this

event and

its significance,

that in this

new name

and in this

new identity

in which God

is a witness

between them

and him.

The

limp

to which

they now

have received

is their

greatest

strength.

No longer

would they be

known for

proud

self-sufficiency,

for figuring

it out,

but they

will be

known by

grace

as weak

and dependent

and dearly

loved

by the

God

who keeps

his

promises.

As we

conclude

and we

think about

the implications

of

this

passage

to us,

let us

remember

that not

only does

God keep

his

promises

to us,

but

the new

name we

receive in

Christ,

we are now

his sons

and daughters.

And the

weaknesses

that we

often feel

as Christians,

both to

remember

God's

promises

and to

be faithful

to them.

That the

promise

of this

passage is

notwithstanding

our new

identity and

notwithstanding

our weaknesses

that Jacob

held on

by grace

and that

we through

Christ are

given

the faith

and the

stamina,

albeit weak,

the ability

to hang

on to

God

by grace

and God

has promised

even in

our moments

of greatest

defeat

to hang

on to

us

until

his

purposes

are

performed.

In just a few

weeks we're going

to celebrate

the 500th

anniversary of

the Protestant

Reformation

and in

particular

the moment

where Martin

Luther nailed

his protests

if you will

to the

church door

in

Bittenberg,

his 95

thesis.

Isn't it

interesting

that the

hymn

that

Luther

wrote,

A Mighty

Fortress

of Our

God,

has as its

second verse

did we

in our

own strength

confide

our

striving

would be

losing?

Did we

in our

own strength

confide

our striving

would be

losing?

Rather,

Luther

with us

invites us

to entrust

ourselves

to God

because his

blessings are

the result

of his

graciousness

to the

undeserving.

thing.

He is

faithful to

his

promises.

He has

committed

himself to

love us

eternally.

And in

Christ,

he is with

us to the

very end.

His purpose

is to

perform.

How blessed

we are when

we can

yield to

God in

the struggle

the way

Jacob did.

How blessed

we are when

a crisis

comes upon

us and

God lays

his hand

upon us

in that

crisis so

that we

become weak

and limp

and out of

joint with

an appalling

sense of

our own

weakness so

that we

can surrender

and say,

Lord,

I cling

to you.

Maybe God

is wrestling

with you

today.

He may be

saying to

you and

to me,

although you're

clever and

astute and

capable,

although you

have believed

in me,

you still

like to

make your

own

arrangements.

You still

like to

manipulate the

circumstances of

your own

life.

You still

like to be

in charge.

My child,

what is

your name?

Let's pray.

Lord, we're

grateful that

in Christ we

live in the

grip of

your

relentless

grace,

and we're

thankful for

this story,

your story,

God's story,

of your

faithful purposes

and plans for

your people

then and

your people

today.

Lord, you've

given us an

up-close view

of one man's

struggles,

and in so

doing, for

many here,

you've reminded

us of those

up-close

struggles that

we live with

every day.

First, thank

you for your

faithful promises,

promises, even

when we are

weak and feel

like our grip

is failing.

Now, Lord,

help us by

faith to

respond to

your word,

to receive

mercy this

morning,

and be

renewed in

our hope

that even

if my grip

feels like

it is

fading, one

holds tightly

to me,

Christ,

my

King.

And may

we, Lord,

leave here

confident,

more confident

than we are

on, not in

our efforts,

but in your

relentless grace

for Christ's

glory, and

for our

good.

We pray this

in Jesus'

name.

Everybody

said,

Amen.